The Apprentice
by Iknowyoulovemexoxo
Summary: Stephanie is the powerful owner of a successful firm and Paul is the father of one looking to make a better life for his family. What happens when their worlds collide?
1. Chapter 1

I haven't written any proper stories in a while so to get me back in the swing of things I've started with a small chapter to see if people are interested in reading more.

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"Thank you Mom" Paul said as he kissed his Mom's cheek "I really appreciate you doing this".

Patricia shook her head at her son "Don't be silly, I don't mind doing this at all, it is actually my pleasure".

Paul picked up his jacket pulling it on "Now be a good girl for your Grandma Lucy". He kissed the little girls cheek

"I'm on my cell if you need me Mom, call me if there are any problems"

"Paul, I have looked after babies before, we will be fine so leave before you're late"

Paul put his hands up in defense before he grabbed his keys and headed for the door.

Stephanie got her usual black coffee from the Starbucks outside of the station as she headed to work with a pile of paperwork in her hands, unfortunately for her car was in the shop and would be there for a few days according to the mechanics so she was stuck taking the subway like ordinary people. Stephanie scoffed in disgust as she walked past the homeless people outside the station and headed in the general direction of the office.

Paul stood on the sidewalk staring at the instructions in his hand "Dammit, couldn't these have been put in English for me?" He started walking in the general direction of where he thought he was meant to be.

As she hurried to the office Stephanie sipped on her coffee and had a quick look at the paperwork in her hands at which point she collided with a hard object causing the coffee to go all over her and the paperwork in her hands.

"Are you stupid?"

"Oh my God, I'm so sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going and didn't see you. Are you okay Ma'am?"

Stephanie looked at the paperwork in her hands and at her white coat that now had a massive brown stain on it.

"Do I look okay? My coat and paperwork are both ruined"

Stephanie roughly pushed past Paul and continued on to her office to check out the damage properly.

She walked into the office building in a foul mood and blanked anyybody who attempted to talk to her before heading for the safety of her own office.

"Ste . . ."

Stephanie put her hand up to silence her Personal Assistant, she did not want to talk about it and she slammed her office door behind her.

Thanks to a few passers by Paul finally managed to get to his destination

"At last, I thought I would never get here and I'm only ten minutes late"

Paul rubbed his face as the warm air of the office building assaulted him and he made his way to the elevator, he had a potentially life changing appointment to keep.

As he stepped off the elevator Paul looked left and then looked right before smiling

"Bingo"

Turning right and walking to the end of the corridor he smiled upon seeing a familiar face

"Shawn, it's so good to see you"

"Paul, dude I thought you'd never get here," Shawn stepped out from behind the desk "So what the hell took you so long? I called your Mom and she said you left at 8"

"I did but I got lost and then I . . ."

Just then the door to the office swung open

"YOU? What the hell are you doing here?"


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you for all of the positive comments to chapter 1, I really appreciated them. Here is chapter 2, I hope you like it :)

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"YOU? What the hell are you doing here?"

Shawn looked between his best friend and his boss, "You two know each other?"

"That is the asshole who ruined my jacket and the paperwork I had prepared for my meeting that starts in fifteen minutes."

Paul felt incredibly guilty having ruined her paperwork, "I'm sorry bu . . ."

"Save it for someone who gives a damn. Shawn, when is your friend meant to be arriving? I thought if they wanted the job they could at least arrive at a decent time."

When Stephanie was in a foul mood she always managed to make Shawn feel like a little boy back at school being told off by the Principal, "He's actually standing right next to me".

Stephanie rubbed her temples as she felt a migraine coming on at that revelation, "I need a drink." She turned around and quietly shut her office door behind her not wanting or needing a migraine before her meeting.

As soon as the office door was shut again Shawn turned to his best friend, "Okay what the hell happened?"

"I was lost and wasn't looking where I was going and walked into her spilling her coffee all over her. Is she normally this much of an ogre?"

Shawn laughed at Paul's description of his potential new boss, "Firstly never say that within earshot of her and secondly she can be. Don't get me wrong she can be the sweetest person you've ever met too but when she's stressed out like she is ahead of this meeting today she is like a bear with a sore head and you have to tread on eggshells around her."

"Do you think I should leave and come back when she is less stressed?"

"I wouldn't if I were you, you were lucky to even get this opportunity so just stick around and weather the storm, it'll be good practise. The one thing you could do would be to make Stephanie a coffee though."

Paul knew that was something he could handle and with any luck it would make up for him ruining her other one, "So how does she like it?"

"Strong black coffee with part cream and part milk and two sugars. The kitchen area is to your left and two doors down."

Paul turned around and headed to the right.

"Left Paul, I said left."

Paul smiled sheepishly as he turned around and headed in the right direction this time to make Stephanie a coffee.

Paul made the coffee and took it back to Shawn, "Brave man you can give this to her, she'd probably throw it over me."

Shawn laughed as he took the coffee from Paul and knocked gently on Stephanie's door before taking it inside and placing it on her desk just as the two men for the meeting arrived, "Can I get you anything to drink gentlemen?" Both men shook their heads, "Well in that case just call if you need anything."

Shawn sat back down at his desk, "You can sit down Paul, we don't charge for seats."

Paul quickly sat down, "Sorry, I'm just a little nervous. I really need this job Shawn."

"I know you do man, that is why I begged Stephanie to give you a shot before she placed adverts everywhere for a new PA. How is Lucy?"

Paul's face lit up at the mention of his daughter, "She's amazing, she's so perfect Shawn. I swear she misses you though, you need to come round more often."

"I'm the sexy boy, of course she misses me," and Shawn chuckled, "Seriously though, how are you coping?"

Paul shrugged his shoulders, "I'm getting by, I have to for Lucy as she needs me."

The two old friends caught up in between Shawn taking phone calls and messages for Stephanie whilst she was in her meeting.

Stephanie smiled and stood up from behind her desk, "This is great news Dave and John, you will not regret signing with us I promise. I will get my PA to draw up a contract as soon as possible and I will e-mail it across for your legal team to take a look at and if they agree we will set up another meeting for you to officially sign."

Both men stood up and shook Stephanie's hand before she showed them out of her office.

As soon as the men had left Stephanie breathed a sigh of relief, "I have no idea what happened to you since yesterday Shawn but that coffee was actually pretty decent and not just barely drinkable."

"That's probably because Paul made it and not me. Give him a chance please Steph, I promise you won't regret it."

Stephanie looked at Shawn and then at Paul and back to Shawn who was now giving her a version of the puppy dog eyes, "Okay okay fine. Seeing as you can make decent coffee and as Shawn gives you such a glowing recommendation I will give you a two week trial. For the first week you are to trail Shawn and watch every single thing he does and for the second week you are to do it all and he will trail you to see how you do. Does that sound fair?"

Paul stood up nodding enthusiastically, "That is more than fair Miss McMahon, thank you, thank you so much." Paul reached out and shook her hand, "I promise you I won't let you down, thank you."

Stephanie laughed softly and shook her head "Don't let me down Paul, you made a terrible first impression so I expect you to redeem yourself over these next two weeks."

As soon as Stephanie left the office to go about her business Paul practically burst with excitement, "Thank you Shawn, I owe you big time for this."

Shawn shook his head, "Just don't let either of us down Paul."


	3. Chapter 3

It had been a long afternoon for Paul and he was so glad when he could leave and head home to his little girl. As much as he needed the job the separation from Lucy was hard for him as he hadn't spent a minute away from her in the six months since she had been born.

Paul put his key in the front door and turned the lock pushing the door open and stepping inside, "I'm home."

"In the lounge Paul."

Paul took the first right and smiled seeing Lucy laying on the floor on her playmat he quickly walked over to her and scooped her up in his arms and smothered her with kisses, "Daddy missed you so much today baby girl. Were you good for your Grandma?"

"She was an excellent little girl, as I knew she would be. Honestly Paul she was no trouble whatsoever and I even had some help when Neysa came over after school to play with her. I gave Lucy her dinner but I haven't bathed her as I thought you'd like to do that before you put her to bed."

"Thanks Mum, I appreciate it." Paul headed upstairs with Lucy to give her a bath and put her to bed and with any luck she would be in bed right on time and her sleep schedule wouldn't be messed up so he would get some sleep tonight.

Once Lucy had her bath and was ready for bed Paul took her into the nursery and sat down in the rocking chair by the window with her, "You know Daddy's only doing this for you right? I want you to have the life that you should have and for you not to be punished because of your Mum. I'm trying to hard to make things right for you and getting this job will only be the first step but it's something and I hope it's something you'll be proud of me for when you're older."

Patricia stood just outside the door eavesdropping on Paul, she hadn't started off intending to eavesdrop as she was going to say goodnight to her grandaughter but when she heard him talking she had stopped to listen to him. Her heart broke as she listened to him though, she knew things were hard for him living at home again with a young baby but she didn't realise exactly how hard and personally he was taking it all.

Paul looked down at his daughter and smiled softly seeing her sounds asleep in his arms, "Yeah you're real proud of me aren't you baby?" He laughed softly to himself before he got up to lay her down in the crib.

Once Paul stood up Patricia quickly wiped the tears from her eyes and stepped inside the nursery, "I'm not too late to say goodnight am I?"

"Of course not Mom, she may be sound asleep but you can still have a little kiss and a cuddle if you want."

"No no it's okay, I don't want to risk waking her and her keeping you up all night. Goodnight Lucy." And she kissed the little girl on the top of the head and ran her hand over her hair before standing back and watched as Paul lay her down and covered her up with her blanket before kissing her on the top of the head also and turning the baby monitor on so he could hear her if she woke up.

"Dinner is in the oven for you Paul, it's your favourite as I figured you deserved it after today."

"Thanks Mum."

Patricia and Paul walked out of the nursery pulling the door to behind them before she headed downstairs and he went to his bedroom to change before he ate.

Paul sat down at the kitchen table just as Patricia placed the plate of food in front of him, "So tell me about your day."

"Don't I get to eat dinner first?"

"You can multi-task can't you? It's really not that hard to do Paul."

Paul rolled his eyes at her, "So what is it exactly that you would like to know?"

"Everything."

Paul took a bite of his steak, "There's not really a lot to tell, I mean I poured hot coffee all down my new boss' front ruining her coat and paperwork, she acted like a real ogre and she gave me a two week trial on the strength of my coffee making skills."

Patricia choked on the cup of tea she was drinking, "Are you sure that actually happened and you didn't just make it all up Paul?"

"Oh I'm positive. Whilst I was searching for the right building I accidentally walked straight into her and she tipped her coffee all down her white coat and over the paperwork she as carrying and then when she realised I was Shawn's friend she was pretty livid and acted like a real bitch towards me. Shawn decided to make me make her coffee so I did and he gave it to her but after she'd drunk it she complimented Shawn on it actually being drinkable but Shawn told her the truth and how it was me who had made it so she said she'd give me a two week trial to see how I did."

"Well I'm proud of you son for managing to pull it all together to get this two week trial and I am even more confident that you will get the job at the end of it. What are you going to do about Lucy's six month check up on Wednesday?"

"I'm going to be there, I don't care what it takes I will be there. I am not missing out on this as it is important and I will be there for every single important appointment and if my potential boss can't understand that then maybe I'm looking in the wrong place for a job."

"Paul you can't be too set in your ways about this, you'll have to talk to her and explain the situation to her because you won't get anywhere if you tell her 'I'm doing . . .' you have to ask her permission really."

"But she's my daughter, I **have** to be there for it because it's not like her Mother will be."

"I know Paul but I will be there even if you can't be. If you want to make things right for Lucy then you need this job and that includes playing by her rules whatever they may be."

Paul grumbled, as much as he hated to admit it he knew his Mom was right, she always was, but he felt bad enough that Lucy only had one parent as it was so he didn't want her to feel like he was abandoning her to, "I know I have to play by her rules if I want to get and keep the job so I can get enough money to buy a new house but she's going to have to understand how important it is for me to be there with Lucy too otherwise I really will be in the wrong job."

"Alright Paul, just keep an open mind and try not to be too pig headed about it all please."

Paul nodded his head and went back to eating his dinner.

Back at the office Shawn was just finishing off for the night, he'd stayed back to tie up a few loose ends which other people would class as tidying up the mess that was his desk because if he was going to show Paul how things were done Paul would actually need to be able to see the desk and everything around it.

Once Shawn had finished up what he felt he needed to do he grabbed his coat and went to say goodnight to Stephanie before he left.

Shawn stood in Stephanie's doorway and saw her staring out over the city, "I'm off for the night."

Stephanie jumped a mile at the sound of Shawn's voice, "Oh my God, did you have to scare me so much?"

"I'm sorry Steph, I honestly thought you knew I was still here."

"I did but my mind drifted so you scared me. What did you say?"

"I said I'm leaving for the night. Are you okay though?"

"Oh yeah, I couldn't be better, things are just going swimmingly for me right now."

Shawn took a step inside of her office, she may be his boss but they were also pretty close friends, "Okay Steph, spill."

Stephanie turned to face him, "There's just a ton of crap with my parents and with Luke."

Shawn groaned, "Luke? Again? What the hell is his problem?"

Stephanie shrugged her shoulders, "Like I know. He pops up every six months or something because he reckons I'm hiding something and my parents are giving me hell because I'm not going home early enough but the problem I have is that I'm scared he's following me and the last thing I want is for him to find out. I'm between a rock and a hard place and then on top of that there's Paul, what if I'm making the wrong decision in letting you further your career and getting a new Personal Assistant? At least you knew Luke and knew the deal with him and could protect me."

Shawn placed his hands on Stephanie's shoulders, "Do you know why I suggested Paul for this job? Apart from him being my best friend in the whole entire universe?"

Stephanie shook her head, "Because you were too lazy to actually place ads?"

Shawn's lips turned into a slight smile, "There's that sense of humor I know and love. No though, you're very wrong. The reason I suggested Paul is for many reasons, apart from him desperately needing the money he is also hellish protective over people and he doesn't take shit from nobody. If you do decide to keep him on you're going to have to brief him on Luke though or I will. Once Paul knows the deal with Luke you will not have to worry about him at all whilst at work because Paul will make sure he gets nowhere near you either in person or on the phone."

Stephanie nodded her head slowly "I know Shawn and I will I promise. You'd better get home to Becca though before she thinks we are having an affair."

Shawn wriggled his eyebrows, "What exactly are you suggesting?"

Stephanie pushed his hands off of her shoulders and took a step back with a look of mock disgust on her face, "Get over yourself, I wouldn't touch you if you were the last man on earth."

Shawn laughed, "Always good to know. See you tomorrow Steph." Shawn turned and left the office to head home to his wife.

As soon as Shawn had left Stephanie turned back to the window and a solitary tear slipped down her cheek as she watched the people going up and down the sidewalk heading home to their families whilst she was stuck here afraid for her own family.


	4. Chapter 4

"Oh you have to be kidding me." Paul rubbed his eyes as he looked at his alarm clock before sliding out of bed, "Lucy, Lucy, Lucy, why today?" Paul scooped Lucy up out of her crib, "Five am is too early, Daddy has work later but I suppose me and you can have some Daddy/daughter time on the couch before I have to get ready."

Paul took his six month old daughter downstairs flicking the TV on before getting comfortable on the couch laying her on his chest as he flicked through the channels searching for something to watch until he had to shower and leave.

Three hours later and Paul was just walking into the office to shadow Shawn for the day but as he looked around he realised he was first there so he sat in Shawn's chair and relaxed before falling asleep.

Paul was rudely awoken from his slumber by someone shaking the chair, "Wakey wakey sleepyhead." His eyes flew open and he darted forward in the chair.

"What? Huh? What's going on?"

Shawn laughed at his reaction to being woken up, "Good morning sleepyhead. How long have you been here?"

Paul rubbed his eyes and looked at his watch, "Hmm about ten minutes. Lucy had me up at five so I guess I fell asleep waiting for you. Stephanie's not here is she?"

"Not yet she's not no. Are you ready and prepared for a full days work?"

"Most definitely yes, I am one hundred percent ready and willing. Where do we start?"

The two men put their heads down and got on with sorting through the mail with Shawn giving Paul directions on what to pass on to somebody else to deal with, what was urgent and what could be done whenever. They were halfway through the pile of mail when Stephanie breezed through the door.

"Good morning you two. I'll have a coffee when you're ready please Paul."

Shawn elbowed Paul in the ribs, "Teachers pet."

Paul sniggered, "Better than being the class dunce. I shall go and make the coffee before taking it in to her, I have to speak with Stephanie about something anyway." Paul got up out of his seat and went to make the coffee.

Once he had a steaming hot cup of coffee in his hands Paul knocked gently on Stephanie's office door before heading in and placing it on her desk, "May I please have a word when you're free?"

Stephanie looked up from her paperwork placing her glasses on the desk, "I've got five minutes I can spare now. What can I help you with?"

"I have an . . . uh . . . appointment that I have to attend tomorrow morning. I should only be gone an hour but I wondered if that would be okay?"

"So on your second full day on the job you want to take time out to go to an "appointment" for whatever reason? Is it important?"

"Kind of yeah."

"Are you dying?"

"Well no, but it is important to me that I am there."

"Sorry but no, you can't go. Is that all?"

Paul nodded his head sadly before turning around and leaving her office.

Shawn lifted his head when he heard Paul walking out of Stephanie's office, "You're not in her bad books already are you?"

Paul just shook his head silently and sat down to get back to what they were doing but Shawn wasn't going to let things drop that easily, "Okay start talking, what's wrong? Don't say nothing as I know you better than that Paul."

Paul let out a heavy sigh and wearily ran his hands over his face, "Tomorrow is Lucy's six month check up and I asked for an hour off to go but Stephanie said no."

Knowing how important Stephanie's family was to her Shawn highly doubted that Stephanie would say no to something like that, "Did you actually tell her it was for your daughter?"

"What? Hell no, I don't want to spring that on her in case she doesn't want a single parent becoming her PA, I just said it was important to me."

"Let me talk to her."

"NO! Shawn you can't tell her, please, I am begging you here."

"Fine, I won't talk to her but how are you going to get to the appointment?"

Paul shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know, I guess I'll have to see if they can rearrange it for a lunchtime or something."

Shawn had an idea on how he could get Paul out for the meeting but it would necessitate some smooth talking, "Take this mail down to the mail room and ask them to send it urgently whilst I take the mail into Stephanie and then I'll show you the programs on the computer okay?"

Paul nodded and grabbed the mail heading for the mail room as Shawn stood up holding the mail for Stephanie and headed for her office, "Stephanie, I have your mail."

Stephanie lifted her head and smiled at Shawn, "Thank you. How's Paul coming along?"

Shawn nodded his head "Good, he's doing really good actually. I was just wondering if you had any dry cleaning you needed doing this week? I figured I'd just mess with Paul's head making him think that it was part of his job too."

Stephanie laughed "Actually I do have this jacket that needs to be cleaned as soon as possible. I was going to drop it in at lunchtime but if you want to be mean to Paul like that you can get him to do that, it's hung up on the back of the door."

"Great, I will do just that." Shawn turned around and took the jacket from its hanging place and left the office shutting the door behind him.

As soon as Paul returned from the mail room Shawn handed Paul the jacket, "Take this to the dry cleaners a few blocks away, just follow the signs, and tell them that Shawn sent you."

Paul gave Shawn a funny look, "Why?"

"Because Stephanie needed the jacket dry cleaning and if you tell them I sent you they'll have the jacket back in the morning,"

Paul nodded his head, "And? what are you playing at?"

Shawn shrugged his shoulders innocently, "Oh I don't know Paul, I mean if you have to collect the dry cleaning late tomorrow morning and there just so happens to be a line you may take a while . . . catch my drift?"

Paul's eyes lit up like a light bulb had gone off in his head, "You're a genius Shawn, I seriously owe you for this."

"I know man, the list of things you owe me for just keeps on growing but that's okay, I'll cash them all in one day but until them I am more than happy to help you out. Hurry up and get going though, if you're too long Sam won't be able to do you the favour and all of my hard work will have been for nothing".

Paul grabbed his own jacket and quickly pulled it on before he hurried out of the door, maybe he would get to go to Lucy's six month check up after all.


	5. Chapter 5

Thank you so much for all of the reviews, I really enjoy reading what you think :)

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Paul dropped Stephanie's dry cleaning off before he returned to the office and sat down with Shawn learning all about the programs on the computer and what job each did.

It was close to lunchtime by the time Shawn had shown Paul everything on the computer and he needed to get something dropped off to the legal department.

"Paul I need to run this down to the lawyers so can I trust you to handle the phone calls? There should be no visitors as Stephanie doesn't have any meetings until 3pm so it shouldn't be too hard."

"I can do it, it won't be too hard to sit here and just answer the phone if it rings. You go and do what you have to do and maybe pick up some lunch as I'm starving."

Shawn rolled his eyes, "You haven't changed a bit, always thinking about your stomach."

"That's me. Now get lost so I can make myself feel important by being in charge here."

Shawn got up from his chair picking up the paperwork before he left the office.

Ten minutes had passed since Shawn had left and Paul was just familiarising himself further with the computer when a gentleman came breezing into the office.

"Is Stephanie in?"

Paul lifted his head to look at this gentleman, "Miss McMahon is in her office yes. Do you have an appointment?"

The gentleman waved his hand dismissively and turned to just walk into Stephanie causing Paul to leap from his seat and get between him and the door.

"Excuse me, you can't just walk in like that. If you want to see Stephanie you must make an appointment which I can do for you if you step over to the desk."

"I don't need to make any freaking appointment to see her so get out of my way."

Just then the office door opened behind Paul, "Excuse me, what on earth is going on out here?"

Both men spoke at the same time, "I'm sor . . . Steph."

Stephanie waved her hands at them both, "Enough. Paul what is going on?"

"This gentleman doesn't have an appointment but he wants to see you and was just going to barge in so I was letting him know he had to make an appointment before he could see you."

Stephanie nodded her head at him, "Thank you for that Paul, I very much appreciate your hard work but it's okay, I will see him. Paul you can get some lunch if you wish, I'll look after the phone."

"No it's okay, Shawn is dropping something off in legal and he's picking us up some lunch while he's gone and then we will be working through lunch if that is okay with you?"

Stephanie smiled softly, "Of course it is, just don't work too hard. Now Shane get your ass into this office and quit harassing my staff." She stepped aside and let the other gentleman enter the office before she slammed the office door so hard the wall shook.

Paul's blood was boiling ever since he had sat down after his run in with this Shane, he didn't know who he thought he was but he was not going to be pushed around by anybody.

Shawn was on his way back up with lunch when he heard the office door slam, he didn't know where it came from but it made him shudder. He walked back into the office, "Did you he . . . whoa, who pissed you off?"

Paul lifted his head, "Some jerk came barging in here wanting to see Stephanie adamant that he didn't need an appointment to see her and then she just let him in."

All of the colour drained from Shawn's face hearing Paul talk about somebody barging into Stephanie's office.

"What's wrong Shawn? Your face is now devoid of colour."

Shawn shook his head trying to clear it, "I'm fine. Do you know what the 'jerk' was called?"

Paul shrugged his shoulders, "I think Stephanie called him Shane, why?"

Shawn let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding, "Ohh Shane, that would be Stephanie's brother. So anyway, did you hear the office door slam?"

"You bet I did, it was Stephanie's. If Shane is Stephanie's brother though why did she seem so mad with him?"

"That is the billion dollar question but one I don't suggest we ask. Let's eat and then get back to work." Shawn threw Paul's sandwich at him before he took a seat and ripped his open and took a massive bite.

Stephanie paced in front of her windows, "What do you want Shane? I've got work to be getting on with so your visit is far from appreciated."

"I spoke to Mom and Dad."

She stopped pacing to look out of the window, "Great, so they're bringing in reinforcements."

"It's not like that Steph."

"No? Then why exactly **ARE** you here Shane if it's not to have a go at me for not being home at a decent hour?"

"Okay so maybe that **IS** why I am here but Steph these long hours aren't good for anybody. Do you realise how much stress it is putting on Mum and Dad? They're doing you a favour as it is."

Stephanie spun around to face her brother, "Gee thanks for the _breaking news_, I had no idea about any of that before you just said it."

"Don't start Stephanie, I'm not here to start a fight with you, I am here to try and get you to see sense and to make you realise that it isn't all about the job, you have a family too."

She squeezed her eyes tightly shut to stop the tears from falling as she thought about her family, "I know Shane, trust me I know. There is not one minute that passes where I am not thinking about them but it's hard, it's something you just wouldn't understand."

"Try me, you might be surprised."

She opened her mouth to tell him about Luke before snapping it shut again, "Forget it, you'd just use it against me anyway. Are you done yet?"

Shane shook his head at her sister, he knew she was stubborn but this was taking it to a whole new level, "Whatever Steph. Don't come crying to me when they want nothing to do with you." He spun around and walked out of her office sick of talking to a brick wall.

Shawn watched as Shane left with a face like thunder and after everything Stephanie had told him about Luke being back around he was worried Shane knew so he put his half eaten sandwich down and made his way into Stephanie's office, "What did he want?"

Stephanie rubbed her temples, "He wanted to give me a lecture on how hard things are for Mum and Dad and how I'm being a selfish bitch by working such late hours."

"But you told him about Luke right?"

She chewed on her lip nervously, "Maybe?"

Shawn groaned, "Steph come on, first it's Paul and now it's your family. Are you going to tell **ANYBODY** that Luke is back around?"

She shook her head, "Nope, it's nobody's business but mine so keep your nose out."

He crossed his arms, "I am only thinking about you and about Alex."

"So am I. Why do you think I'm doing this? I miss him like crazy Shawn but I can't take the risk."

"What if I gave you an option to spend time with Alex where Luke won't possibly be able to find anything out."

"I would love it but I'd also think you've lost your mind as you're not a magician."

He smirked, "Want to bet on it?"

She laughed and threw a pen at him, "Get out, just get out before I fire you."

"You can't fire me, I've already quit." He laughed and quickly ducked out of the office shutting the door behind him before she threw something harder at him.

Paul watched the way Shawn left Stephanie's office smiling and laughing, "Is there something going on between you two?"

Shawn violently shook his head, "Absolutely not, I have Rebecca and Cameron."

"So? It doesn't stop people having affairs."

"Trust me Paul, there is nothing sexual or romantic between myself and Stephanie, it is purely platonic and I wouldn't have it any other way. Stephanie is like my little sister and I have an inexplicable desire to protect her, that is as far as it goes between us. Enough with the twenty questions though, let's get back to work." Shawn picked up his sandwich again and sat back down with ideas running through his head on how he could help Stephanie, he just needed to talk to Rebecca first.


	6. Chapter 6

I'm so glad you're all enjoying this story, thank you so much for the reviews :)

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It was 6:30pm before Paul left the office which meant he was most definitely going to miss giving Lucy her bath but if he was really lucky he'd be home just in time to put her to bed.

Paul raced through the front door and headed for the stairs taking them two at a time making it to the top in speedy fashion before he followed the sound of his Mom's voice to the Nursery and he smiled seeing Lucy laying on the changing table as his Mom dressed her in her pajamas.

"Don't just stand there, you can take over."

Paul laughed, "You've still got eyes in the back of your head I see." He closed the distance between them and started to put Lucy's sleep suit on her.

"Not to nag you or anything Paul but you're late, is everything okay?"

"Yeah everything's fine, Stephanie's last appointment ran late and I had to stay with Shawn as I'm shadowing him."

"Okay good. I will leave you two alone and go and start on dinner, I'm sure your Dad hasn't done it."

He laughed softly, "That would be asking a bit much I think. Say goodnight to Grandma Lucy." Paul waved the little girls hand and put on a high pitched voice, "Night night Grandma."

Patricia laughed and shook her head before kissing her Granddaughter on the top of the head, "Goodnight Lucy." She patted him on the shoulder before she headed downstairs.

Once his Mom had left and Lucy was dressed Paul picked her up and went and sat down with her telling her all about his day until she fell fast asleep.

Paul was up early the next morning making everything was ready for Lucy's Doctor's appointment, he had to make sure the diaper bag had everything she could possibly need in it because he didn't want to be under prepared if she got cranky. As soon as he was done with the diaper bag Lucy started crying wanting some attention which he was happy to give her before he left.

He scooped the little girl up into his arms, "Good morning baby girl. Let's get you cleaned up and dressed and then we'll see about getting some breakfast."

While Paul was dealing with Lucy Patricia went about making coffee, lifting the diaper bag to move it she realized it weighed quite a bit and opened it up. "Jesus Paul, you've got everything but the kitchen sink in here," she started pulling things out so it didn't tip the stroller over.

As he walked into the kitchen with Lucy Paul saw his Mom removing things from the bag, "Mom! What are you doing?"

"I'm removing things from this bag as you have everything but the kitchen sink in here."

"But what if we need that stuff?"

"Come on Paul, it is only the Doctors, she'll only be out a maximum of two hours. You need to relax."

He rubbed Lucy's back gently, "I'm sorry Mom, I just don't want the Doctor thinking I'm a bad Dad."

"They won't Paul, anyone can see that you are an amazing Father so just relax. Give Lucy here and get yourself some breakfast."

"No it's okay, I'll keep hold of her."

Patricia shrugged and watched Paul as he juggled Lucy and tried making toast until he relented and handed her over so he could butter it.

Once he had eaten breakfast he had one last cuddle with Lucy before he had to leave, "Okay Mom so you know where the Doctors office is right?"

"Yes dear, I have been there before and so has your Dad so I think we can manage to get there without getting lost. Do you know what time the appointment is?"

Paul rolled his eyes, "Of course I do, I made it."

"Well now you realise how stupid your question to me was then. Your Father and I will aim to get there with Lucy about 11:15, do you want us to wait for you to arrive before we go in?"

"Yes please. I will hopefully get there about 11:15 too, it just depends what time I can get away from the office."

"Your boss is okay with this right? It's not too late to rearrange."

"Uh yeah, she's . . . um fine with it. I've got to get going though so I will see you all later." He got up from his chair handing Lucy to his Mom before he gave them both a quick kiss on the cheek and headed to work.

The morning seemed to be passing so slowly for Paul once he got to work as he kept checking his watch every two minutes so he wasn't late.

"Paul relax before I kill you."

Paul lifted his head to look at Shawn, "Sorry dude, I just don't want to be late."

"You won't be late, I will make sure of it as I have an alarm set on my phone for 11 for you to 'collect the dry cleaning' for Stephanie. Do me a favour and get lunch on your way back though so it helps explain the length of time you'll be gone."

"That's fine, I'll then work through lunch too to make up for it."

"You would be anyway as Steph has a lunch meeting. Now let me show you the filing system, it's not complicated once you get to know it but it probably will be for your first time."

The two men put their heads down and worked hard until Shawn's phone went off and Paul left for the Doctors.

Paul arrived at the Doctors just after his parents and they all headed inside to sign in and wait.

He gently rocked the stroller back and forth as he waited to be called with Lucy looking around as he did so and he felt so out of place as there were a lot of Mom's on their own and a few couples with their children but he was the only Dad on his own. Before he had chance to dwell on it Lucy's name was called and he got up and wheeled her into the Doctors office.

When he entered the room the Nurse addressed him, "Take a seat and Doctor Jameson will be with you in a minute." With that she left Paul alone, giving him chance to lift Lucy out of the stroller and to take her coat off of her.

The door swung open and a smartly dressed lady walked in, "Mr Levesque?"

He lifted his head, "Dr Jameson?"

Dr Jameson smiled and nodded her head reaching to shake his hand, "That would be. Is this little beauty Lucy?"

Smiling like a truly proud Father he nodded, "It sure is. I'm sure we didn't see you last time we came here?"

"No you wouldn't have, I've only been here for a short while as my predecessor was unexpectedly taken ill and had to take an extended leave. Will Lucy's Mother be joining us?"

"Uh . . . I . . . umm, she's not in the picture any more."

"Oh I see, I'm sorry to hear that. Let's get this ball rolling and see how Lucy is progressing."

Paul smiled nervously as Dr Jameson asked questions then took Lucy to weigh and measure her before she could come to her final conclusion.

"Lucy is one happy and healthy little girl and is one hundred percent in the right places where she should be in her development. You should be very happy Mr Levesque, you are doing a wonderful job."

"Thank you but I couldn't do it without my parents, if it wasn't for them I don't know where we would be probably on the streets somewhere. Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course, that is what I'm here for."

"Will it do any damage to her emotionally or her development if I am at work 9 until 5ish Monday to Friday and she is left with my parents?"

"Of course not Mr Levesque. Lucy is clearly a very loving child and well adjusted so it should do absolutely no harm for her to be left with her Grandparents while you're working, plenty of other parents do it."

"I know they do but I just feel bad, Lucy only has me."

"Rather than thinking of it in a negative light that she only has you think of it in a more positive way, she has you and your parents so she is in actual fact a lot better off than some children who are isolated and only have main contact with their parents."

He was relieved hearing it put like that, "You're right, thank you so much"

"Is there anything else you'd like to ask?"

"No you're okay thank you."

"Okay well if there are any problems my door is always open but if not then come back in six months for Lucy's one-year check up."

Paul stood up from his chair, "Thank you." He shook the Doctors hand before carefully placing Lucy back in the stroller to just head back into the waiting room to put her coat back on her before he had to get back to work.

As soon as he walked out of the office his parents stood up.

"So how is she? What did the Doctor say?"

"She's great, everything is fine and right on track."

Patricia smiled smugly, "I knew it."

Paul Sr shook his head at his wife, "You are impossible woman."

Paul just smiled and sat down to put Lucy's coat back on before he strapped her into the stroller and wheeled her outside, "I suppose I should get back to work. I don't want to though."

"Son you've got to go back to work, you can't let Shawn down."

"I know I know. I guess I will see you tonight." He kissed Lucy's cheek before reluctantly handing the stroller over to his Mom and walked away looking back all the time until he rounded the corner and could no longer see his parents and Lucy so he focussed on getting the dry cleaning and lunch before heading back to the office.

Paul walked back into the office with the dry cleaning in one hand and a bag of lunch supplies in the other but was met with the angry face of his boss.

"Where the hell have you been? It does not take nearly an hour and a half to collect some dry cleaning."

"I . . . umm there was a long line, I had to wait. I brought lunch so I could work through it to make up for it though. I'm sorry."

Stephanie rubbed her temples, "Sorry, Shawn's gone missing, you'd gone missing and I had no idea where anybody was."

"Sorry, I promise it won't happen again." He slowly walked past Stephanie and placed the bag of food on the desk before he hung her dry cleaning up in her office whilst she paced a little in his office. "I'll make some coffee and see if I can locate Shawn for you, I won't be long."

He made a hasty exit from the office to make coffee and ask a few questions because he didn't want to get in any more trouble.

Just as Paul returned to the office with coffee minus any clue where Shawn he walked in behind him.

"Shawn! My office, now!"

Shawn and Paul exchanged alarmed looks with neither knowing what was wrong but they both knew it was bad. Shawn took the coffee from Paul and headed into the office shutting the door behind him.

As soon as the door was shut Stephanie turned to face him, "I think he rang the office."

Shawn's eyes widened, "What? Why do you think that?"

"Neither you nor Paul was here so I had to answer the phone and as I picked it up and asked who was there they hung up and they've not rung back."

"Oh shit Steph, that's not good. Maybe it was just a bad connection?"

"I don't know Shawn, that was ten minutes ago."

Just as she said that they heard the phone ring and they both looked at each other and waited. They heard Paul talking on the phone for a minute before there was a knock at the door.

"Come in."

Paul put his head around the door, "Sorry to bother you but that was Miss Andrea Peters, she said she was sorry for hanging up on you a few minutes ago but there was a problem with the phone and it just cut out. Apparently she was due to meet with you at 1:15 but she is running late so she asked if it would be okay if the meeting was pushed back to 2 please?"

Stephanie's body relaxed when she realised it wasn't Luke, "That is fine, not a problem. I don't have any other meetings this afternoon so 2 suits me fine."

He nodded his head and shut the door behind him, making his way back to his desk.

"So it wasn't Luke."

"I guess not Shawn but it freaked me out."

"Which is exactly why you need to tell your parents about Luke, they need to know."

"Forget it Shawn, it's not happening. Just go back to work." She sat down at her desk and ignored him.

Shawn left the office and shut the door behind him, he had to get her to open up to somebody before it was too late.

For the rest of the afternoon Stephanie gave Shawn the cold shoulder preferring to talk to Paul and give him instructions.

As soon the the clock struck five Shawn started shutting the computer down, "We are going home right on time tonight Paul and I am going to make sure Stephanie leaves at the same time also as she is coming to mine for dinner."

"Why do I have a feeling she doesn't know this yet?"

Shawn laughed at Paul, "Probably because you're right so if I were you I'd get out of here whilst you can. I will see you bright and early in the morning."

Paul got up and grabbed his jacket, "Of course man. Good luck with Stephanie and I will pray for you."

Shawn rolled his eyes and gathered his things together before he moved to Stephanie's office door and pushed it open, "Alright Steph, it's home time."

Stephanie looked up from her desk slightly startled, "Since when did you start telling me what to do?"

"Since you were coming home with me for dinner and because I'd rather not sleep on the couch because you forced me to be late and Rebecca got mad."

She sighed with frustration and started packing things away, "I can cook for myself you know."

"I know but my wife insisted and when she insists I just follow orders."

"Yeah because you're whipped."

"You're damn right I am."

Stephanie pretended to gag, "Oh God, I don't want to know. I'm going to grab some things I need to go over by morning and will do them on the way to yours and when I get home if that is alright with you?"

"Yes that's fine with me, just hurry up."

She rushed shutting her computer off and gathering her things together and soon they were in Shawn's car on the way to his.

The car ride on the way to Shawn's was mostly quiet apart from the low noise of the radio that filtered through the car as they made their journey across town.

As soon as the car was stopped Shawn grabbed the papers out of Stephanie's hand, "Okay no more work. I will give these back to you when we get back into the car for me to drop you home."

Stephanie rolled her eyes and got out of the car, he was such a demanding person sometimes but she had to admit if he hadn't have done it she would have remained with her head in the paperwork until it was done and then she'd go inside.

The two got out of the car and headed to the house. Shawn opened the front door and motioned inside, "Go and make yourself comfortable in the lounge and I will get you a drink."

Shawn shut the door behind them and watched as Stephanie opened the front door and smiled as the cry of "Mommy" filtered out through the now open door, this was hopefully just what the Doctor ordered.


	7. Chapter 7

Thank you for the really positive feedback, it means a lot to me :)

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When Shawn had demanded she come back to his for dinner Stephanie was happy to be able to enjoy some adult company for the evening without getting the third degree from her parents.

As soon as he told her to make herself comfortable Stephanie opened the lounge door looking forward to sinking into a nice comfortable couch, she wasn't prepared for the cry of "Mommy" and for someone to attach themselves to her legs.

She looked down at what was currently attached to her legs before a slow smiled spread across her face and she bent down and picked the little boy up and held him close before kissing his cheek, "Alex, my baby boy, I've missed you so much. What are you doing here?"

The little boy lifted his head from where it had been buried in Stephanie's neck, "I pay wiv Cam'ron."

For the first time she looked at the room properly and smiled seeing Shawn's son sprawled out on the floor with his toy cars racing them around a little track, "Hi Cameron."

Cameron lifted his head briefly, "Hello Auntie Stephy." He quickly put his head back down and continued playing.

Alex wriggled in his Mom's arms to get down, "Come pay wiv us."

Stephanie laughed softly and put her son on the floor before kicking off her shoes and removing her jacket and joining the two boys on the floor to play cars.

Shawn had walked past the lounge and straight into the kitchen where he knew his wife was kissed her on the cheek, "Thank you for doing this."

Rebecca turned her head and smiled at her husband, "It's my pleasure. You know how much Cameron enjoys playing with Alex and how he sees him as a younger brother and you know I adore Stephanie so it was really a win/win situation all around."

He shrugged his shoulders, "I know but it was a big ask to get you to liaise with Vince and Linda to arrange it all, by all accounts they aren't best pleased with Stephanie as it is."

She sighed, "Oh yeah, that would be the understatement of the century but once I explained it all they honestly weren't that hard to deal with. I'm glad you told me about Luke though and how her parents don't know as I was grilled about why she was working so hard and how I was so relaxed about her working you so hard too."

"I'm sorry to put you in that position Bec, I am trying to get her to open up to them but it is hard work."

"Yeah I know, she's stubborn. Why don't you go and join Stephanie and the boys in the lounge whilst I finish off dinner and I will call you when it's ready."

He kissed his wife once more before leaving the kitchen to join everyone else in the lounge.

Stephanie was sat on the floor watching the two boys race their cars around the track battling to get to the end first. There was something so relaxing about watching the innocence of the two young boys playing together, they were so happy and carefree and she just wished she could go back to a time when she was like that because this grown up stuff sucked.

Stephanie had drifted off into her own little dream world and had failed to see or hear Shawn enter the room until he sat down next to her, "Having fun?"

She lifted her head and smiled at him, "The best time actually, I just wish I could pause this moment and stay here forever. What time are Vince and Linda coming to pick Alex up?"

"Well actually."

But before Shawn could finish his sentence Alex came and made himself comfortable in Stephanie's lap, "I seepover wiv Cam'ron."

She looked at Shawn, "Is this true?"

He nodded his head, "It sure is. We thought that you would enjoy spending as much time as possible with Alex so he/both of you are staying here tonight in the spare rooms so you can bath him and put him to bed and all of that."

As much as she wanted to believe Shawn was doing this for her and Alex's benefit she couldn't help but think there was a catch, "So what's the catch Shawn?"

"No catch. I promised you time with your son and I am delivering unless you object?"

Stephanie squeezed the little boy gently, "Never, you know that."

A silence soon fell over the room as Shawn joined Cameron playing with the cars and Stephanie just sat there holding Alex until dinner was ready.

Dinner was a relaxed affair with Cameron happily sharing all about what he had been up to since he had last seen Stephanie.

Once he was done telling Stephanie everything Cameron turned to his Dad, "So when is Uncle Paul coming?"

Stephanie looked at Shawn and raised her eyebrow, "Not the same one surely."

Shawn nodded, "The very same one." He turned to address his son, "I don't know Cam, sorry."

"But it's been twenty years since I've seen him."

Shawn laughed, "You're only four Cameron, it isn't that long."

"But I miss him, he's cool."

Being completely unable to say no to his son Shawn sighed, "I'll talk to him tomorrow and see if he can come over at the weekend."

Cameron smiled brightly, "Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay, thank you Daddy." He then fell silent and focussed on finishing his dinner.

As soon as dinner was finished Stephanie got up to clear the plates, it was the least she could do but Rebecca's hand on her arm stopped her, "Relax Stephanie, you don't have to help clear up."

"But I want to, it's the least I can do."

Rebecca sighed, "Okay fine, you can help. Boys do you want dessert?"

Almost in stereo a cry of 'ICE CREAM!' could be heard causing all three adults to laugh, "Two bowls of ice cream coming up."

The two women disappeared into the kitchen with the dirty dishes giving Rebecca chance to tackle Stephanie on everything.

"So how's things Steph?"

Stephanie shrugged, "Okay thanks. Work is busy and there's never enough hours in the day."

"Is that why you look like you haven't slept in a month?"

"What has Shawn told you?"

"Nothing much, he's just worried about you."

"I'm fine. I am a grown adult and don't need to be babysat so just drop it."

Sensing she'd hit a raw nerve Rebecca put her hands up in defence, "Subject dropped. Could you get the ice cream out of the freezer please?"

Two bowls of ice cream were prepared in silence and then taken to the table.

After dessert was finished it was nearing Alex's bedtime, "Come on you, let's get you washed up and ready for bed."

All of the excitement had worn Alex out so he reached his arms out so Stephanie would pick him up and carry him upstairs.

As soon as Stephanie was out of sight and Cameron was settled on the couch watching cartoons Shawn turned to Rebecca, "And?"

"And she nearly bit my head off. Shawn she looks like she hasn't slept in a month, we need to help her."

"We can't help her if she won't let us though."

"Really? I didn't expect such a defeatist attitude from you."

"I'm not being defeatist, I am being a realist thank you very much. The last thing we want to do is push her away so let's just make sure she knows we're here for her."

Rebecca grew silent knowing Shawn was right but reluctant to admit it as she wanted to give things one more go before she admitted defeat.

Meanwhile upstairs Stephanie was just tucking Alex into bed before she sat on the edge of the bed to read him a bedtime story, she'd missed this.

Before she was halfway done with the book Alex was sound asleep so she got up to leave but lingered in the doorway briefly watching him as he slept.

When she went back downstairs she saw that Shawn and Cameron were watching cartoons so she decided to join them for a bit and immerse herself into a world that was not here.

Before anyone realised it was time for Cameron to go to bed so the little boy hugged Stephanie tightly and before Shawn took him up to bed leaving Rebecca and Stephanie alone again.

"Steph I'm sorry about earlier, I didn't mean to make you think we were ganging up on you."

"It's okay Becca, I am just a little sensitive about it. If truth be known I am not sleeping, I'm frightened Luke is going to break in when I'm asleep and hurt me."

"You've got to tell the Cops Steph, they can do something about it surely."

"But if I go to the Cops then it means that I've got to live through everything again and I can't put Alex through that."

Rebecca rubbed her face wearily, "But what about you? If you're not sleeping then you're no good to Alex as you are."

"I'm surviving, Luke will leave soon enough and life can get back to normal."

"You've at least told Paul about Luke right?"

"Umm . . . no? I don't want my business being broadcast to the world and he has no reason to know so why should I tell him?"

"Oh gee I don't know, maybe because he's working for you and is the point of contact between you and the outside world."

"With any luck by the time Shawn moves on, if Paul works out this is, Luke will be gone so Paul won't need to know anything. Please can we just drop this? I'm not changing my mind and telling him."

Rebecca shook her head in disappointment, as much as she wanted Stephanie to be as protected as much as possible she wasn't going to risk pushing her too far and in return Stephanie pushing Shawn away and her having nobody.

Stephanie truly believed she was doing the right thing by Alex not going to the Police or telling Paul and nobody was going to change her mind, not even Shawn or Rebecca. She wasn't weak and didn't need protecting no matter what Shawn wanted to believe.


	8. Chapter 8

Thank you for the great feedback, I hope you like this new chapter :)

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Stephanie had a restful nights sleep because she felt safe and secure knowing she wasn't alone and that there was somebody there to protect her if anything were to happen.

She was woken from her slumber by Alex jumping onto the bed, "Mommy wake up!"

Stephanie groaned and rubbed her eyes, "It's too early, go away."

He started to jump up and down on the bed, "Wakey wakey."

She shook her head and pulled the little boy down besides her tickling him, "I said to go away, Mommy was sleeping."

"But I wake and hungwy."

She rolled her eyes at the little boy, "Well it looks like me and you need to go and see if Uncle Shawn and Aunty Rebecca are awake yet because this is their house and we can't just help ourselves."

Alex pouted, "No fair."

Stephanie kissed his cheek, "Less of the cheek Alexander Christopher McMahon."

He was only two but Alex had Stephanie's temper and personality and knew what he wanted and when he wanted it.

She slid out of bed and pulled her robe on before picking the pouting little boy up from the bed and heading downstairs.

Luckily Rebecca was already up and had the breakfast things lined up on the counter ready for people to pick and choose. Seeing Stephanie and Alex walk in Rebecca smiled at them both, "Good morning you two. Did you sleep well?"

Stephanie nodded, "Yes thanks, the best I have in ages."

"Good I am pleased to hear that. Shawn is in the bathroom at the minute but as soon as he's done it's all yours, Cameron is in the lounge as he's just finished his breakfast so what would you two like?"

"Soldiers!"

Rebecca laughed at the outburst from the little boy, "And what would you like on those soldiers Alex?"

Alex just shrugged his shoulders so Stephanie interrupted, "Normally I just put butter on them."

"Alright, one set of soldiers coming right up. Take a seat and I will bring them to you once they are ready."

Soon after Shawn came downstairs so Stephanie left Alex with his soldiers to go and get dressed and ready for the day, she was so grateful to her Mom for packing her some clothes for the day as she really didn't want to go to work in the same outfit that she had worn the day before or be late as she had to go home and change first.

Once she was showered, dressed and had eaten breakfast it was time for Stephanie and Shawn to leave for work, "Baby it's time for Mommy to go to work. Be a good boy for Aunty Rebecca until Nanny and Pop come and pick you up and then be a good boy for them too and I will see you tonight."

Alex started to cry and clung to Stephanie's neck, "Noooooooooooo. Mommy no go."

Stephanie hugged him tightly rubbing his back and kissed him on the top of the head, "But Mommy has to go to work. I will see you tonight baby."

He pulled away from Stephanie, "Mean Mommy." and went and threw himself face down on the couch.

She sighed heavily as she stood up, "I'm sorry Bec."

Rebecca smiled softly at her, "Don't worry, he'll be fine in a minute. Just go and soon he'll forget all about how upset he was and he will be happy to see you tonight."

Stephanie reluctantly nodded and picked up her bag and walked out of the room to meet Shawn who was waiting by the door for her.

The drive to work was quiet as Stephanie was distracted.

Once they arrived at the offices Stephanie put her business face on and walked in like there was nothing on her mind.

Once she reached her office Stephanie took a deep breath and sat down at her desk for a minute to clear her head before she started work but there was one thing she needed to do before she did that and she got back up and walked back out to where Shawn was sat working, "Shawn I just wanted to say thank you for last night."

Shawn got up from his chair and walked around the desk, "It was nothing, you know I love Alex like he was my own and Cam was thrilled to have somebody to play with so it was a win/win situation for everyone."

"Even so it meant a lot to me." Stephanie pulled Shawn into a tight hug but quickly pulled back when she heard somebody clear their throat behind her and she turned around to see Paul stood there.

"I'm going to go and start on my work." She quickly walked into her office and shut the door completely ignoring Paul, it's not like there was anything going on between her and Shawn but she wasn't going to justify herself to him.

As soon as Stephanie had shut her office door Paul raised his eyebrow, "Is there something going on between you two?"

Shawn violently shook his head, "Don't be stupid Paul, she was just thanking me."

"Thanking you for what?"

"Thanking me for having her over for dinner last night."

Paul was skeptical that he was telling him the truth but he couldn't argue with him, not when he was still on a trial basis and if Stephanie caught wind of him insinuating that Shawn and her were having an affair and it wasn't true he would be gone.

Paul took off his jacket, "Let's just get started."

"That is the smartest thing you have said so far today." Shawn went and sat back in his chair just as the phone started to ring.

The rest of the week passed without incident and come Monday it would be Paul's turn to run the office but before then he had a play date with Cameron.

His parents were out of town for the weekend so Paul had to take Lucy with him but hopefully Rebecca would watch her for him.

Every ten minutes all morning Cameron had been saying, "Is he here yet?" Shawn and Rebecca were at their wits end so when there was a knock at the door Shawn was praying it was Paul.

Shawn swung the door open and smiled seeing Paul stood there but his smile got wider as his eyes travelled down and he saw Lucy, "You brought my favourite God daughter then?"

Paul laughed, "My parents are out of town for the weekend, it was a last minute thing, so I had to bring her with me. I hope you don't mind that I brought her?"

Shawn shook his head immediately reached for the carrier, "Absolutely not. Give that carrier here and go and see my son before I strangle him."

Releasing his grip of the carrier into Shawn's waiting hand he walked past him and went straight for the lounge, "So did you miss me?"

Cameron ran straight into Paul's arms, "Loads and loads."

Paul smiled as he hugged the little boy, "Well I've got someone I'd like you to meet."

Cameron slowly pulled back from Paul's embrace with a pout on his face, "No fair."

"Cameron!" Rebecca was quick to scold the little boy as she could see Shawn lingering behind Paul with the carrier.

"I'm sowwy Uncle Paul. Who?"

Paul stepped aside, "My daughter Lucy."

Cameron looked between Paul and Lucy, "But what about playing?"

Paul crouched back down to the little boys level, "Well I was thinking that maybe your Mom would watch him for me. Do you think she would Cam?"

Cameron vigorously nodded his head, "Mommy loves babies."

Rebecca laughed, "You know I'd be happy to watch her Paul. Just hand over the diaper bag and the carrier and you won't be allowed near her until you have to leave."

Paul shook his head, "Charming. Shawn you heard your wife, hand the baby over."

Shawn handed Rebecca the carrier over reluctantly, "I'd better get a cuddle before you leave."

Paul held his hands up in the air, "I'm not getting involved, it's between the two of you. So what do you want to do Cam?"

"Baseball!"

"Well get your bat and a ball and we'll go and play some baseball in the garden."

Cameron ran off to get his bat and ball leaving the adults alone.

"So how are you enjoying work Paul?"

Paul smiled at Rebecca, "It's great, I miss Lucy during the day though."

"I bet you do but she's in safe hands with your parents."

Paul nodded his head just as Cameron came running back into the room, "Ready!"

All three of the boys headed outside to play some baseball whilst Rebecca enjoyed spending time with Lucy.

After a few hours in the garden playing baseball Cameron was exhausted, hungry and thirsty so they all came in for a drink and a snack.

Whilst Cameron was eating his snack the adults sat in the lounge with Shawn having a cuddle with Lucy.

"She's so cute and happy Paul, you should be very proud of yourself".

Paul smiled at Rebecca, "Thank you. It's really hard work but she makes it all worthwhile."

"So what do you think of Stephanie as a boss?"

He raised his eyebrow, "You know her?"

She nodded her head, "Yeah, she was even over here for dinner the other night with . . ."

Shawn quickly cut in, "She came with loads of work. I did tell you she came over for dinner, remember?"

Rebecca threw Shawn a strange look not quite understanding why he did that.

Paul looked at the two of them, "Shawn why didn't you tell me you actually knew Stephanie on a personal level? I know you said she came for dinner but I thought it was a work thing."

Shawn shrugged, "I didn't think it was relevant that me and her are good friends. So answer Bec's question."

Paul rolled his eyes, "She's . . . volatile, I think that's the nicest way to put it."

"But as a person what do you think of her?"

He shrugged, "She seems nice enough when she doesn't go nuts. I'm hoping that she'll calm down if/when I get the job and she knows she'll have a Personal Assistant or whatever you want to call the job I'll be doing."

Rebecca smiled softly, "She is a nice person Paul, she really is. I think she's just under a bit of stress at the minute."

"Well I'm cutting her some slack and hopefully she'll be nice to me all of the time eventually. I just want to impress her and to get this job so hopefully me and Lucy can move out of home and life can return to normal".


	9. Chapter 9

I was inspired so there is a quick update to this story, I hope you like it :)

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It was 8am on Monday morning and Paul was already at work as he wanted to make a good first impression for his week being in charge. His parents had arrived home early Sunday evening and were more than happy to take care of Lucy earlier than normal so he could make a good impression.

When Shawn arrived at 8:30 as normal he was surprised to see Paul already there, "Keen aren't we?"

Paul looked up to see Shawn stood in front of him, "I wanted to make sure I was on time and I was prepared for the day. Stephanie is not in yet."

"Yeah I know, she called and said she'd be a couple of minutes late as she had a family thing to deal with."

"Oh okay."

Shawn took his jacket off and sat down next to Paul and observe him as he worked to make sure he did things correctly.

Stephanie breezed through the door just before 9am, "Sorry I'm late. Any messages?"

Paul shook his head, "Not yet. A lady with a crazy name that I am not even going to attempt to pronounce said she'd call back after 9."

She couldn't help but giggle, "You mean Sandy Schmeitzer?"

"Yeah, that's her."

"Well when she calls back just put her through please as I'm expecting the call."

"Not a problem Miss McMahon. Would you like a cup of coffee?"

"Yes please, I'm dying for one this morning."

Stephanie then went into her office to start working and Paul got up to make the coffee.

The morning seemed to be passing without incident which Paul was pleased with as he wanted a smooth first day but things took a strange turn with the next phone call.

"Good morning, you have reached Stephanie McMahon's office, how may I help you? . . . . Hello? . . . . Excuse me? Is anybody there?" Paul then hung up the phone.

"Who was that Paul?"

"I have no idea. I think they must have had a bad cell reception or something because I couldn't hear them and they apparently couldn't hear me. I'm sure they'll ring back when they're in better range".

After that phone call nothing out of the ordinary happened and lunchtime was fast approaching which gave Shawn the perfect opportunity to leave Paul alone for ten minutes knowing things normally went quiet at this time, "Look I'm going to go out and get some lunch now a minute whilst it is quiet if you think you can handle things?"

"I'll be fine. We both need to eat so getting some lunch would be great as I'm kind of starving right now."

Shawn laughed, "Nothing new there then. I'll be back in fifteen minutes." He got up and grabbed his jacket putting it on as he left.

A few minutes after Shawn had left the main receptionist walked in with a big bunch of flowers, "Aww you shouldn't have Nicky, that's too kind of you."

Nicky laughed at Paul, "Sorry to burst your bubble but they're not for you, they're for Steph. Can you make sure she gets them please?"

"Of course. I'm just about to make some coffee so I will take them in to her with the coffee, thanks."

Nicky nodded and placed the flowers on the desk before she hurried back downstairs.

Paul got up whilst it was quiet to go and make some coffee to go with lunch and hopefully the phone wouldn't ring.

Stephanie was up to her eyeballs in work but she was managing to get it all done pretty quickly as evidenced by the pile of things she had to do shrinking so as a reward she decided to take a five minute break. She was sat back in her chair when she heard the phone ringing and ringing and ringing, hearing nobody pick up she decided to get up and see what was going on and she frowned when she opened her door to see nobody sat at the desk so she quickly went to answer the phone herself, "Hello?"

"Stephanie, it's so good to hear your voice."

The colour drained from Stephanie's face hearing the voice on the other end of the line, "You? What the hell do you want Luke?"

"I'm a changed man Steph, you've got to give me another chance to prove to you how much I love you and need you in my life. I promise I won't let you down."

There was nothing but silence from Stephanie's end so Luke continued, "Did you like the flowers I sent you?"

For the first time Stephanie actually looked at the flowers on the desk and picked the card out from the middle of them to read.

_To my dearest Stephanie,_

_I know I made some mistakes in the past but they're behind me, I've changed and I want you back. Please forgive me._

_I'll love you forever and always,_

_Luke xxxx_

Stephanie couldn't take any more and just hung up the phone.

Paul had made three cups of coffee and was carrying them back to the office carefully on a tray but as he walked through the door he knew everything wasn't quite how he left it as he could feel an atmosphere that wasn't there before.

Stephanie spun around when she heard somebody walk through the door behind her and seeing Paul stood before her she flew into a rage, "How dare you! How could you leave the office? It is your job to sit here and man the phones not to swan off whenever you feel like it!"

Paul was taken aback by the anger he was hearing in her voice and the level she'd raised her voice to, "I'm sorry, I thought you'd like a cup of coffee so I went to make one. I thou . . ."

"Enough! I don't want to hear your excuses because you're fired so get OUT!"

"But . . ."

"I said you're fired!"

Paul reluctantly put the tray of drinks on the desk and grabbed his jacket and left the office.

As soon as Paul had left Stephanie allowed herself to slide to the floor with her back against the desk and pulled her knees to her chest as the tears started to fall.

Paul was confused and angry about being fired for making a cup of coffee and he breezed down the stairs wanting to work off some steam before he went into public. He was so focussed on trying to cool down as he walked through Reception Paul failed to see Shawn until he crashed into him, "Whoa dude, where are you going in such a hurry?"

Paul lifted his head and finally saw Shawn stood in front of him, "Home apparently."

"What the hell? Why are you quitting Paul? I thought it was all going so well."

"I didn't quit, I got fired for making a cup of coffee."

Shawn couldn't help but look at Paul like he had three heads, "Excuse me?"

"I don't know Shawn. I went to make some coffee to go with our lunch and then I was going to take a cup into Stephanie with the flowers Nicky dropped off but as soon as I returned Stephanie flew into this rage about it being my job to sit there manning the phone."

"Hold up Paul, what do you mean flowers?"

He shrugged, "I don't know, this big bunch of flowers got dropped off just after you left and that is all I know."

Shawn panicked, "Shit shit shit. I'll call you later." He turned around and ran through Reception and up the stairs to the office not wanting to wait for the elevator as he needed to check on Stephanie leaving Paul stood there dumbfounded.

Paul slowly made his way out of the offices to head home, he took the scenic route to cool down some more as he was still fuming.

Shawn took the stairs two at a time and raced into the office but stopped dead seeing Stephanie sat on the floor in a ball with her head down but her shoulders visibly shaking as she cried. He shut the door behind him and dropped to the floor beside her and pulled her into his arms and held her tightly as she cried.

He waited until the sobs subsided before he broached the subject, "So what happened?"

Stephanie kept a tight grip of Shawn, "He called and sent flowers, he wants me back."

"That is reason to fire Paul because?"

"Because he should have protected me! If he'd done his job I wouldn't have had to take the call."

"He didn't know! Luke would have asked for you and he would have put him through because that is what he has been taught. This is why I told you to tell him."

Stephanie pulled away from Shawn and got up and stormed into her office slamming the door shut, she was sick of being told it was her fault, everything was always her fault.

He watched her storm off before he picked himself up off of the floor to tidy away and that is when he found the card from the flowers and he read it shaking his head, "You have a lot to answer for Luke."


	10. Chapter 10

I'm on a roll right now with this story so hopefully you like it :)

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Paul took a long walk before he headed home to face his parents unsure of how exactly to tell them he got fired for making a cup of coffee.

When he opened the front door his Mom was just creeping downstairs with the monitor in hand and had the fright of her life seeing Paul stood in front of her, "Paul, what are you doing here?"

He sighed really not wanting to deal with this yet, "I'll talk about it later but for now I need a shower and to relax. Is Lucy asleep?"

"Yes, I just put her down so try not to wake her please."

With that his Mom headed into the kitchen to gossip with his Dad about why he was home so early and Paul headed upstairs to have a nice long hot shower.

Back at the office Shawn was unsure on how to deal with Stephanie and the situation so he decided to ring the one person who he knew would be able to help, his wife.

Whilst he waited for her to pick up Shawn looked over the work Paul had been doing on the computer and he was actually impressed by the standard of it

"Shawn?"

He sighed softly hearing his wife's voice, "We have a problem."

Normally at this point Rebecca would tease her husband but she could hear the genuine concern in his voice, "What's happened?"

"Steph's fired Paul."

"What? What did he do?"

He rubbed his temple, "Make a cup of coffee."

Rebecca laughed softly thinking he was kidding, "No seriously Shawn, what did he do?"

"I was being serious. I went to get us some lunch because Paul wanted to work through and he went to make some coffee to go with it but from what I can gather in the time that he left the office to make the coffee and the time he returned Luke rang and he sent her some flowers too but Paul knew about those and basically Steph freaked out and fired him for not protecting her."

"What? That makes no sense."

"Yeah well you try telling her that because I did and she stormed off and slammed her office door behind her. I don't know what to do though Bec, Paul needs this job and he didn't deserve to be fired over this."

"It's wrong Shawn I know but you can't force her to take him back or anything like that, it is entirely her decision."

"Well she makes terrible decisions sometimes." Shawn pouted like a little child and Rebecca could hear it in his voice.

"No pouting Shawn, it won't get you anywhere."

"What will get me anywhere though?"

"Nothing, you know Steph and you just have to give her time to come around. Once she calms down you will be able to talk sensibly to her"

"That could take weeks."

"It also might only take hours so just don't push it".

Shawn sighed heavily, "Okay okay. Thanks Bec and I love you."

"I love you too Shawn."

Shawn hung up the phone and reached for his sandwich, there was nothing else he could do.

After he had showered Paul was feeling calmer and more relaxed but now he had to face his parents and admit he had been fired.

Once he was dressed Paul slowly descended the stairs and headed in the direction of the lounge where he could hear the TV blaring.

As he walked into the room Paul felt two sets of eyes on him as he took a seat on the couch, "What?"

Patricia was first to speak up, "Paul it's only 2pm and you've been home for a good half hour, what happened?"

"She fired me."

Paul Sr frowned, "Why? What did you do wrong?"

Paul lifted his shoulders in a shrug, "The truth is I don't really know. Shawn went to get us lunch so I went to make everyone a cup of coffee and when I returned Stephanie was livid and she threw a fit before firing me."

Patricia shook her head, "That makes no sense son, there has to be more to it than that."

"I know Mom, I just don't know what it is because I honestly didn't do anything beyond that and refuse to pronounce somebody's surname but she took that in good spirits. I'll call Shawn tonight and ask him if he knows what on Earth I did because I would like to know what exactly it was."

His parents were satisfied with that answer and let the subject drop.

A few hours had passed since Stephanie had stormed off and she had finally calmed down enough to apologise to Shawn for the way she treated him.

Reluctantly Stephanie opened her office door and stepped out to talk to Shawn. She shuffled her feet nervously on the carpet, "I'm sorry Shawn, I didn't mean to fly off the handle with you."

Shawn looked up from the paperwork, "You're apologising to the wrong person here. I'm not the person you fired for making a cup of freaking coffee. Before you go crazy and storm out on me again you've got to realise how irrational your behaviour was, you refused to tell Paul what was going on but yet you then blame him for the fact that Luke got through to talk to you. Even you have to realise that is ridiculous."

She ran her hand through her hair, "I know Shawn and I will apologise to him eventually but you're here right now and I wanted to apologise to you."

"I don't think an apology cuts it Steph. You fired one of my best friends because you wouldn't tell him the truth."

"I get it Shawn, you don't have to keep repeating that."

"I do if it's the only way to make you realise how stupid you're being. Paul is a good guy who deserves a break but you go and screw him over because you can. I'm going home, it's only fifteen minutes early but I just can't be here with you right now."

With that Shawn got up and grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair before he breezed past Stephanie and walked out.

Stephanie watched Shawn leave before she went back into her office and picked up the phone making a quick call, "Hi it's me, I'm going to be late tonight as there's something I've got to do. I'll see you when I get home." Once she hung up the phone Stephanie grabbed her jacket and her bag and left the office, there was no way she was going to get any more work done today anyway after what Shawn said and with everything playing on her mind.


	11. Chapter 11

Thank you for all of the great feedback, I hope you enjoy this :)

* * *

Paul was stretched out on the floor laying next to the activity mat Lucy was laying on just enjoying the quiet time with his daughter, "You know there's one good thing about being fired, I get to spend more time with Lucy."

Patricia who was sat on the couch behind him reading a magazine laughed softly, "Then there is the downside of having no money."

"That is true too but what is better, having money or spending time with my daughter? I know which one I'd go for."

"You should think about maybe applying for different jobs."

"I know and I will, just not today. Before I apply for any more jobs I want to talk to Shawn and find out exactly what I did wrong because it can't be making a cup of coffee. As soon as I get a proper answer from him I will apply for jobs because I want to give my next employer a correct answer and not tell them it's because I made a cup of coffee because they won't believe me."

"That's fair enough."

Patricia went back to her magazine and Paul went back to focussing on Lucy.

Stephanie was stood outside the front door nervous, this was a massive step for her and she was absolutely petrified it was going to blow up in her face. She nervously wiped her clammy hands in her skirt before she took the plunge and rang the doorbell.

Paul lifted his head when he heard the doorbell ring, "If you can watch Lucy I'll go, it might be Shawn."

Patricia put her magazine down, "Sure. If it is Shawn invite him in, it would be nice to see him."

He pushed himself up off of the floor and went to open the front door but it wasn't Shawn who stood in front of him, "What are you doing here?"

Stephanie chewed on her lip nervously, "We need to talk. Can I come in?"

"I don't know why we need to talk, you made it pretty clear that I was fired earlier."

She sighed heavily, "Yeah about that, I really do need to talk to you so please can I come in? All I ask for is five minutes of your time."

He stepped aside and opened the door wider, "I guess. Come in."

Stephanie stepped inside and Paul shut the door behind her before leading her to the lounge where his Mom and Lucy were currently located.

Patricia looked up when she heard Paul re-enter the room and was stunned to see a female behind him so she quickly got up from the couch and picked Lucy up, "We'll get out of your way."

Paul nodded and smiled appreciatively towards her "Thanks Mom. Before you go, let me introduce you to Stephanie, my ex-boss."

Patricia's eyebrow raised in surprise wondering what she was doing here but she quickly shifted Lucy onto her hip and reached out her hand to the young lady, "It's very nice to meet you, Paul told me a lot about you."

Stephanie laughed softly, "I'm sure it was all bad."

"Actually it wasn't. We will leave you to it though and go and check on dinner."

"Before you go, who is this gorgeous little girl?" Stephanie reached for the little girls cheek and stroked it gently, she was adorable.

Whilst Stephanie was preoccupied with looking at Lucy Patricia took the opportunity and glared at Paul mouthing, "Tell her the truth."

He groaned lowly at his Mom's insistence, "That would be Lucy . . ." Patricia glared at her son again irritating him further, "She's my daughter."

Stephanie's head snapped up and around so quick that Paul thought she would end up with whiplash, "Your daughter?"

He nodded his head, "That is what I said."

Patricia took that as her cue to leave, "Come on Lucy, let's check on Grandpa and see if he's burning dinner yet." She quickly stepped around Stephanie and Paul and left the room pulling the door to behind her.

Paul motioned to the couch, "Take a seat."

Stephanie nodded and moved a cuddly toy from the couch and sat down entirely unsure of where to start so she decided to start with the obvious, "So . . . uh . . . you never mentioned you have a daughter."

"You never asked."

"True but I never heard you talk about her. She's adorable, I'm sure you and her Mom are very proud."

He laughed sarcastically, "That would have required her Mother to stick around and give a damn about somebody other than herself."

Stephanie's eyes widened in surprise causing him to back pedal, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't say that."

"Is it not true?"

He sighed heavily, "Oh no, it is most definitely true. She turned out not to be the woman I thought she was and she upped and left when Lucy was three weeks old."

"Three **weeks**? I could never imagine leaving my baby now let alone at three weeks old." Her hand flew to her mouth when she realised what she said, "Oops."

Paul sat on the couch and got comfortable staring directly at her, "You have a baby?"

She nodded her head, "He's two, his name is Alex and he's my world."

"Shawn never mentioned anything about you having a husband and child."

She violently shook her head, "No husband, just Alex. Shawn didn't mention anything as I try and keep my work and my private life separate, for more reasons than you could possibly understand."

"Try me."

Stephanie laughed at him, "Only if you tell me about Lucy's Mom."

Paul smiled warmly at her, she wasn't the heartless bitch he thought she was, "You've got yourself a deal there Miss McMahon."

She smiled brightly in response, "Get talking then. I asked about Lucy first so you can tell me your story and then I'll tell you mine."

"Well I guess the short version of the story is that I was working as a Graphic Designer for a major company and I'd been with Sarah for about two years before she fell pregnant and things were really good, we'd just gotten engaged and everything seemed to be going well. Towards the end of the pregnancy my workload increased but I always made sure I was there for the Doctors appointments and I was there for the birth but there was something about Sarah that was different, she was quite distant and soon after she had Lucy her behaviour became quite erratic. One day I was at work when I got a phone call from one of my neighbours, they said they'd seen Sarah leave the house ten minutes previously but they'd not seen her take Lucy with her and they were worried."

"She didn't leave Lucy home alone did she?"

"Yes she did. I rushed home from work to find Lucy in her bassinet in the lounge with a note which said Sarah couldn't cope and she had to leave."

"Oh my God that's crazy, what would have happened if that neighbour hadn't have called you?"

"I think she knew the neighbour would call as that particular neighbour was always watching out of the window for comings and goings. Anyway, I initially took a couple of weeks off to look after Lucy and just take care of things but a few days after Sarah left there was a knock at the door, apparently Sarah had run up hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of gambling debts and there were loan sharks after her. To pay off her debts for Lucy's sake I ended up using all of my savings and selling the house which is why I ended up moving in with my parents."

"I can't believe that, that is ridiculous. How could anybody get up and leave their baby like that and leave you with all of her debts? How come you're no longer a Graphic Designer?"

"I always knew Sarah was selfish, I just didn't realise exactly how selfish she was. I ended up quitting my job as a Graphic Designer because the hours were long and I didn't feel it was fair on Lucy or my parents to ask them to look after her whilst I was at work."

"Have you heard anything from Sarah since?"

"Not a word but I'm not surprised."

"If she turned up tomorrow would you take her back?"

He shook his head, "I couldn't trust her not to run away again or run up massive debts so I couldn't take the risk. So now tell me you're story."

Stephanie grinned, "I can top your story."

Paul laughed, "Yeah because it's a competition right?"

She shrugged, "We either make it a competition or we'll just drown in our own misery. Before I tell you my story is your story the reason Shawn got you the job with me?"

He nodded, "Yes it was. I told him I was thinking of going back to work part time to earn some money so I could buy my own place again so Lucy had her own space and Shawn said that you were a pretty relaxed boss who was very understanding about family and as he was thinking of moving on I'd be a great replacement but that didn't appear to be the case."

She chewed on her lip nervously, "Yeah about that, you'll understand more once you hear my story."

Meanwhile in the kitchen Patricia was sat on the table with Lucy on her lap as Paul Sr made dinner, "There's been no screaming yet. Do you think she's come to give him his job back Paul?"

"I don't know, I'm keeping my fingers crossed though."

In the lounge Stephanie played with her fingers nervously as she pondered where to begin.

"You do know talking is essential to telling me your story right?"

Stephanie grabbed the nearest cushion and hit him with it, "Shut up, I just don't know where to start."

"How about the beginning?"

She hit him again causing him to laugh and wrestle the cushion out of her control, "Sorry."

She sighed heavily, "I was dating this guy Luke for three years, off and on through the entire relationship he was violent towards me, it was never anything major until the last six months. In the last six months of our relationship the business really started to get up and running so I was working incredibly long hours trying to cope with the demand and then I'd go home and he'd be waiting for me accusing me of having an affair because there was no way I was 'at work' for as long as I said I was. When I stuck to the story of being at work he would attack me. The short version of what happened was one night it was so bad I ended up in hospital at which point I found out I was pregnant with Alex and that gave me the strength to walk away."

"Wow, I can't believe you went through that."

"I can't either but on the bright side I do have a beautiful little boy."

"What happened to your ex?"

"Luke? He got charged and sent to jail but was out after two years."

Paul frowned, "Well that's messed up. Is he involved in Alex's life?"

"He kind of doesn't know he exists, that's kind of why you got fired."

"Huh? Explain that please."

Stephanie got up and started to pace in front of him, "I never told Luke I was pregnant, I never testified in court so he had absolutely no idea. Once he got out of jail he started to follow me for a couple of months and then he would disappear for a few months or whatever and then he'd return. Well to begin with it was limited to him following me but now this time he sent the flowers, you know the ones on the desk earlier, and he rang whilst you were making the coffee and said he wanted me back and he had changed. I obviously freaked out, hearing from him just scared me so much that I didn't know what to do or how to react and I ended up taking everything out on you. It was totally uncalled for and you didn't deserve it but the last thing I wanted was to actually speak to him."

"So you're telling me you fired me because Luke your ex rang and he got through to you?"

"Yes and before you say it I've already had it from Shawn that you would have put him through anyway because I didn't tell you about him but . . . that's kind of why I'm here, I came to apologise. I'm really sorry Paul for firing you and for freaking out on you as it was unfair and completely uncalled for."

He rubbed his temples, "So you expected me to be psychic?"

She smiled shyly, "Yes?"

"Sorry to disappoint you but I failed that class."

She laughed despite herself, "You're taking this better than I expected."

He shrugged, "Well I can't be too hard on you as I did keep Lucy from you, granted that's not as big of a deal as this but it would impact on my work. You've had it tough and by the sound of it you've already had it from Shawn so why put you through it again?"

"Thank you Paul, I appreciate that. So . . . umm . . . do you want to come back to work?"

"Oh I don't know about that." He pretended to think about it just to wind her up, "I'll see you bright and early in the morning?"

Stephanie smiled brightly, "Make it 9, I want Shawn to think I didn't talk to you."

"Why would you want that?"

"I just want to see what he'll do or say."

Paul laughed and stood up, "Well I'll see you at 9 in the morning then."

She didn't know what came over herself but she hugged him before she quickly pulled back, "I . . . uh . . . should get home to Alex before my parents kill me."

"I should go and give Lucy a bath ready for bed so let me walk you out."

Paul followed Stephanie to the door, "Thank you for being so understanding Stephanie."

"No, thank **you**! Good night Paul."

Stephanie opened the door and stepped into the crisp night air and walked back to her car, only when she was safely inside did she relax fully.

Paul watched Stephanie until she got into her car and then he shut the front door and leant against it sighing heavily, today had been a rough day full of ups and downs but at least he had his job back.


	12. Chapter 12

Thank you for all of the wonderful feedback, I hope you enjoy this new installment :)

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Once Stephanie had left and Paul had composed himself again he walked towards the kitchen to get his daughter to give her a bath and get her ready for bed.

As soon as he pushed the kitchen door open his Mom was asking questions, "So what did she want? She's very pretty, you never told us that. Do you have your job back? Did she give you a good reason for firing you?"

Paul lifted his hands to quieten his Mom, "Whoa there horsey, one question at a time."

Patricia frowned, "Don't talk to me like that. Maybe if you didn't keep us in the dark I wouldn't be asking the questions."

He quickly lifted Lucy from his Mom's lap, "Well that told me. I'm going to bathe Lucy and put her to bed." He turned around and walked right back out of the door again not wanting to fight with his Mom now everything was turning out so well for him.

Paul Sr glared at his wife as his son left the room, "Did you really have to do that?"

"What? I couldn't help it Paul. I want what's best for him and I just want to know what's going on."

"I know you do but he would have told us in his own time if you had just given him time to breathe."

Patricia hated admitting when her husband was right as he would always gloat about it so she wasn't going to answer to save herself the annoyance.

Stephanie felt the happiest she'd been in a long time as she pulled up outside her parents house and she wasn't even bothered if they shouted at her for being late.

Stephanie turned the key in the lock and pushed the front door open before shutting it behind her and throwing her bag on the floor by the door, "Honey I'm home."

Stephanie laughed as Alex came rushing out of the lounge and straight into her arms, "Mommy!"

She kissed the side of his head and picked him up, "That's me. Did you miss me?"

He nodded his head enthusiastically, "Nanny said you wouldn't be home before bed."

She looked quizzically at her Mother as she stood in front of her having followed Alex out of the lounge, "Why would you do that?"

"Well you did say you would be late, I assumed you meant **really** late."

"No I didn't, I just meant later than five-thirty late. I had to make a stop off on my way home to apologise to somebody for firing them."

Linda raised her eyebrow, "I don't think I want to know. Alex hasn't had his bath yet as we were just about to do that so if you want to do that you can."

"Of course I want to do that. Thank you Mom."

Linda nodded her head, "You're welcome." She watched as Stephanie carried Alex up the stairs as he talked excitedly all about his day.

Once Paul had put Lucy to bed he went downstairs to apologise to his Mom, he knew he shouldn't have snapped at her but sometimes she just knew how to push his buttons.

As he walked into the kitchen he felt both of his parents turn to look at him, at the same time both he and his Mom said, "I'm sorry."

Paul's head snapped up when he heard his Mom apologising, "Why are you apologising? I was the one who unfairly snapped your head off."

Patricia shrugged "It wasn't really unfair when I jumped down your throat as soon as you walked in the door. I just want what's best for you and Lucy, you know that right?"

He pulled out a seat and sat down, "Of course I do and I was going to tell you what happened but it was hard for me to wrap my head around it."

Patricia looked at her son hopefully silently begging him to continue which he did.

"Stephanie came to apologise for firing me earlier, everything wasn't quite as it seems. I don't want to go into the background as it's really not my place to do so but I'll put it in a nutshell for you, Stephanie is being stalked by an ex and she's trying to protect herself and her son."

In unison his parents said, "Her son?"

He nodded, "She has a little boy. I'm not entirely sure how old he is but she's just trying to protect him."

"So what about your job? Do you still have to find a new one?"

"No, she wants me to go back to work for her. I get a late start in the morning as she wants to wind Shawn up."

Patricia laughed, "I see how it is. Poor Shawn."

Paul grinned, "Nah, he deserves it."

The next morning Stephanie walked into work in a really bright mood knowing that Paul was going to surprise Shawn, her bright mood didn't go unnoticed by Shawn as she walked in though.

"So what has got you so cheerful today Steph? Did you ask Paul back?"

"I'm just in a good mood, is that now a crime?"

Shawn smirked, "When it's you a good mood it is definitely a crime as that never happens."

She stuck her tongue out at him before walking into her office without shutting the door as she really wanted to hear what happened when Paul turned up for work.

After watching the clock for the past half hour Stephanie finally heard footsteps outside the door and she prayed it was Paul as the wait was killing her.

Just as the stroke of nine hit on his watch Paul walked back into the office where he had gotten fired yesterday, "What are you doing in my seat?"

Shawn's head snapped up when he heard Paul's voice, "Paul?"

Paul smirked, "That'd be me. Who were you expecting? The President?"

Shawn got up out of his seat and walked around the desk to embrace his friend, "What are you doing here? I thought Stephanie fired you and if she brought you back why are you so late?"

Paul laughed as he patted Shawn's back as they embraced, "I figured I'd just drop by for shits and giggles to see how long it would take Stephanie to kick me out again."

From behind them they both heard a laugh as Stephanie stood in the doorway, "Don't listen to a word he said Shawn."

Shawn pulled back from the hug and looked at Stephanie, "I'm confused. Will one of you please tell me what on earth is going on?"

Paul shrugged his jacket off his shoulders, "I would but I'm worried you've messed up my new system so I want to check on that." He walked past Shawn and took a seat at the desk to see what Shawn had been up to.

Shawn kept staring at Stephanie, "And?"

She rolled her eyes, "Sheesh. As you can tell I gave Paul his job back, I went to talk to him and we were both completely honest with each other and now we both know everything."

Shawn raised his eyebrow, "**Everything**?"

She nodded, "Every single tiny little detail. Will you leave me alone about it now?"

Shawn pretended to think about it for a minute before he put her out of her misery, "Hmmm I guess that can be arranged but on one condition."

"One condition?"

"Yes, you promise to only fire Paul if he sucks at the job."

Paul picked up the stapler and threw it at Shawn just missing his head, "Hey! I am a good worker thank you very much and at least I make coffee that can be consumed." He stuck his tongue out at Shawn much to Stephanie's amusement.

"I will leave you two Kindergarteners to fight amongst yourselves. Be good or I'll have to put you both in time out." Stephanie then turned around and walked back into her office shutting the door behind her happy with the decision she had made.

As soon as Stephanie had shut the office door Shawn grabbed a seat and slid it around the desk next to Paul, "Okay seriously now man, did she really tell you everything?"

Paul nodded, "Everything about Luke and about Alex and everything in between and I completely understand it all now and her behaviour becomes a little more rational."

Shawn snorted, "Rational? Wow you're delusional. I'll shut up now though and just observe and only make comment if you do something wrong but I've got to tell you man I am happy to have you back."

Paul smiled, "I am happy to be back."


	13. Chapter 13

I am really having fun writing this story so it makes me happy to see you enjoying it so thank you for the fabulous feedback :)

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Paul was quickly settling back into the swing of things with work and wasn't missing a beat with phone calls or e-mails that were coming in and that was surprising Shawn as he thought he would be so anxious to get things right that he'd make silly mistakes but he seemed to be so relaxed it was all coming easy to him.

"You know Paul I'm impressed, you're doing so well."

Paul smirked, "So well that you're offering to put the kettle on?"

Shawn laughed and got up from his seat, "I'll put the kettle on but you know what I'm like with making coffee, nobody can ever drink it."

Just as Shawn was about to leave the room a delivery man walked in with flowers, "Aww Shawn you shouldn't have, that's too sweet of you."

Shawn turned to look at Paul but was less than amused, "Do you want me to handle this?"

Paul shook his head, "Of course not, I am capable of signing for a bunch of flowers you know."

"I didn't mean that Paul and you know it."

"I know you didn't but I can handle this, I am a big boy."

Shawn shrugged and walked out of the room letting Paul turn his attention to the delivery man, "So how can I help you?"

"Is this Stephanie McMahon's office?"

"Yes it is."

"Okay good. Please can you sign for these flowers?" With that he thrust the clipboard and pen in Paul's direction.

Paul was not content to just sign for them though, not after what had been said yesterday, "Before I sign for them I'd like to know who they're from so is there a card with them that I can read please?"

"Yes sir there is, it is in the middle of the flowers."

Paul reached into the middle of the flowers and pulled out the card reading it slowly:

_I meant what I said yesterday Steph, I want another chance._

_Love you forever and always_

_Luke_

Paul frowned and quickly stuffed the card back into the flowers before grabbing the pen and scribbling 'Return to sender, unknown at this address' on the delivery sheet and thrust it back at the delivery man, "Take this and those ugly flowers and get out of here before I throw you out."

The delivery man had never come across anything like this before and he picked up the flowers and turned on his heel walking out of the room nearly bumping into a returning Shawn as he left.

Shawn walked back into the room confused seeing the delivery man walking out with the flowers, "Awww poor Paulie, he has such high standards he doesn't like the flowers that was sent to him so he sent them away again."

Paul frowned, "HA! Try a scum-bag who can't take a hint."

"Who? The delivery man?"

"No you idiot, Luke."

Shawn's eyes widened, "You are kidding me? He didn't send those flowers did he?"

Paul nodded sadly, "Apparently so or at least that is what the card said so I just wrote on the delivery sheet 'Return to sender, unknown at this address' and sent the delivery man on his way."

Shawn snorted, "I would have never thought of doing that, I would have signed for them, ripped up the card and given them to somebody else in the office."

"What can I say? I have the best ideas. I'm going to make the coffee though so just hang around here in case he comes back please."

"Of course. Get some cookies too please, I think we've earned them."

Paul shook his head as he got up from his chair to make coffee and get some cookies.

Once he had made the coffee Paul took three cups of coffee back to the office dropping two off with Shawn at the desk and then taking the remaining cup and plate of cookies in to Stephanie, "Coffee is served."

Stephanie lifted her head from her work and smiled, "You are a mind reader, I'm dying of thirst here and I need a coffee hit to keep me awake as I wade through this paperwork as it's complicated legal stuff."

"Well the plate of chocolate cookies should be just what the Doctor ordered then."

"Oh yes it is, thank you so much." Stephanie picked up a cookie from the plate and took a huge bite, "Mmm so good, thank you. So how are you settling back in?"

"Good thanks, I'm really enjoying being back at work and getting my teeth stuck right in. At lunchtime would you like me to pick up some lunch for you and bring it back or will you be heading out to pick it up yourself?"

"Could you pick me up something please? I think I'm going to work right through and try and get home at a decent hour tonight."

"Of course. I'll let you know when I'm going so you can let me know what you want but for now I will let you get back to work."

Paul turned and walked back out of the office shutting the door behind him only to face a disappointed Shawn, "Where are the cookies?"

"I left them all with Stephanie, she needed the sugar hit more than we did."

Shawn playfully huffed, "Well you owe me lunch then."

Paul laughed at Shawn as he sat back down, "Lunch is on me."

Just before lunch the delivery man walked back in with the very same bunch of flowers Paul had thrown him out with, "What do you want now?"

"My boss was pissed off when I went back with the flowers and he saw what you had written on the delivery sheet and he told me that no such service existed where we returned the flowers to the sender so you or somebody else had to sign for them."

Paul stood up, "Or else?"

"Or else I get fired I assume."

"Okay fine." Paul grabbed the clipboard and quickly scribbled his signature, "Take those flowers with you and give them to your Girlfriend, Wife, Mother, Sister, Boyfriend, Husband, the woman at Reception. I really don't care what you do with the flowers now they are signed for but just take them out of this office right now."

"I can't do that, they were paid for to go to Stephanie McMahon and that is who they have to go to."

"Just do it okay? I'm slowly losing patience with you and you don't want to see me when I hit angry."

The delivery man reluctantly picked up the bunch of flowers and headed out with them again, they'd make a lovely present for his Mum.

As soon as the delivery guy left Shawn turned to Paul, "That was stupid."

Paul frowned, "What was stupid?"

"Signing for the flowers, they'll be traced back to you now and Luke will target you if he finds out that Stephanie never got them."

"Well I wish him luck with that one as he'll be tracing me back all of the way to Florida."

"What? How do you work that out Paul?"

Paul smirked, "Because I signed it as Mickey Mouse."

"You are a very bad boy."

"But you like it."

"I love it, it is pure genius on your part to come up with doing that. Are you going to tell Stephanie?"

Neither of them had heard Stephanie open the door and enter the room, "Tell Stephanie what?"


	14. Chapter 14

I'm so glad you are all enjoying the story, it means a lot to me :)

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"Tell Stephanie what?"

Shawn looked at Paul and Paul looked right back at him both with a mirrored expression of 'Oh shit' on their faces.

Stephanie wasn't content to let them stand there attempting to catch flies with their mouths, "Exactly what do you want to know if Paul will tell me Shawn?"

Paul answered before Shawn had a chance, "He wanted to know if I was going to leave to get lunch without telling you I was going."

She looked at him suspiciously not really believe a word he said, "Do you think I'm stupid?"

Shawn was quick to jump in, "No he's right Steph, I didn't know if he knew that he was meant to ask you if you wanted something also so I just was asking if he was going to tell you he was leaving and ask you if you wanted anything."

She still didn't believe them but she had to just let it go, "Okay fine. I don't believe you but you're clearly not going to tell me the truth anyway so there's no point in me asking any more. I think I'm going to go out and get some lunch myself and have a walk in the fresh air to try and clear my head so you don't need to do that."

"NO! You can't do that Stephanie. Either let me get you lunch and bring it back to you or let me walk with you."

She looked at Paul like he had three heads, "I'm a big girl, I think I can manage to not get myself lost but thank you for the offer."

Paul looked at Shawn pleadingly, he didn't trust Luke to not harass Stephanie if she went out walking all alone as he had a bad feeling he would be hanging around.

Shawn was caught between a rock and a hard place not wanting to arouse Stephanie's suspicions but knowing where Paul was coming from, "I don't think that is what Paul is saying Steph, I think he just wants to get to know you a little better."

Paul nodded his head enthusiastically, "Exactly Shawn, what he said is totally correct Steph."

She shrugged, "Well in that case I can't say no can I? Let me grab my jacket and bag and we can leave." She then turned around and walked back into her office.

As soon as she disappeared Shawn turned to Paul, "Okay spill, what's going on?"

Paul shrugged, "Call it a gut feeling, I don't trust Luke not to be hanging around and at least if he is and I'm with her I can protect her."

Shawn nodded his head as Paul spoke a lot of sense, "You're right I guess. Take care of her and call me if you need me."

Stephanie walked out of her office jacket on and bag in hand, "Aww that's sweet of you Shawn but I think between us we can find our way to the park, then the sandwich shop and back again."

Shawn laughed as Paul pulled on his jacket and checked his pockets for his wallet, "Well you kids be good and don't do anything I wouldn't."

Paul snorted as he walked back around the desk and patted Shawn on the back, "Do everything I wouldn't do which is also known as my work."

Shawn shook his head and watched as the two of them left the office, he had an uneasy feeling in the pit of stomach and he just hoped they came back in one piece.

As they walked out of the offices into the fresh air Stephanie stopped and took a deep breath, "It feels so good to be out of that stuffy office."

Paul smiled and nodded, "It sure does, Shawn really can be overbearing sometimes."

She laughed at him, "That's not what I meant and you know it."

"I know but I like to rag on Shawn a lot."

"Yeah I had noticed that actually. How are the two of you friends?"

"He gives as good as he gets, really it's not as bad as it seems."

"It can't be as he speaks very highly of you as a friend. Come on though and let's get going because I can't afford to slack."

The two of them headed for a short walk to the park to enjoy the fresh air before they got lunch and went back to work.

As they walked to the park the two talked and shared a laugh enjoying each others company and getting to know each other a little bit better.

Whilst they were walking around the park Stephanie spotted an ice cream truck and her face lit up, "I want an ice cream."

Paul laughed at her, "But you've not had your lunch yet, it will ruin it."

"What? Are you my Father or something? I am a grown woman and can handle having an ice cream before my lunch."

"I never said you couldn't but did your parents never teach you that food first and ice cream later?"

She stuck her tongue out at him, "Whatever Mister Stick in the Mud, I'm having an ice cream whether you agree with me or not."

In return he rolled his eyes, "Yes Miss I'm Five Years Old, whatever you say."

"Good. Now be a good boy and stay here and I will be back in a minute with my ice cream, would you like one?"

"No you're okay thanks, I'm perfectly happy waiting for my lunch."

Stephanie smiled at him before walking the short distance to the ice cream van and placing her order and waiting. Once Stephanie had her ice cream she turned around to walk back to Paul but stopped dead as her eyes locked with Luke's.

Inside she was panicking, sure he wasn't close enough to be able to talk to her or touch her but his mere presence scared her more than she would ever care to admit. She blinked a couple of times before making the short walk back to Paul's side.

Paul saw her stop dead on her way back with the ice cream and his head turned to see what she saw but all he could see was people milling around, clearly she had recognised somebody though as she was now a deathly shade of white. As Stephanie got to his side he couldn't hide the concern on his face, "What's wrong?"

Stephanie felt like crying but she had to compose herself, without uttering a word she did the only thing she could think of and she slipped her hand into his and gripped it tightly.

His eyes widened as he looked at her face as she held his hand, "What's going on Steph? Talk to me."

"Let's go, please let's just go and get lunch and go back to the office."

He gripped her hand back, shrugged and nodded, "Your wish is my command."

The two silently walked hand in hand back through the park as Stephanie ate the ice cream before they made their way to the sandwich shop.

As they stared at the board with the list of options Stephanie's mind drifted to Luke and how he knew where she was.

Paul noticed that Stephanie drifted off so he decided to do what any person in his position would do, "So Stephanie, I was thinking of maybe getting Shawn a toasted salad sandwich with mustard, pickles and a heavy helping of chilli. What do you think?"

"Sounds good to me."

"Nice to see you're listening to me Steph."

She shook her head to focus on what was being said again, "I am listening, what makes you think I'm not?"

"Maybe the fact that I suggested a toasted salad sandwich with mustard, pickles and a heavy helping of chilli for Shawn."

Stephanie's face fell, "Oh, maybe you're right then."

"Yes I am right. So what's on your mind? You've been acting funny since you got the ice cream."

"Doesn't matter, let's just order."

"It matters to me when it is clearly bothering you."

"Well it doesn't matter to me now, it's over so let's just order and get back to work."

The two went to the counter and ordered three sandwiches with sensible fillings and stood back to wait. As she turned to the window she saw Luke stood right outside again and she quickly turned around and buried her face in Paul's chest.

Paul placed his hands on Stephanie's hips out of instinct, "Okay now you're going to tell me what's going on."

She looked up at him with the saddest eyes he'd ever seen, "Luke, he's stood outside right now and he was in the park too. I'm sorry for holding your hand and burying my face in your chest but I needed comfort and the whole holding your hand thing I thought would make him back off if he thought I was dating someone like you but I was wrong."

He looked at the window and saw the guy who he assumed was Luke stood outside and then back at Stephanie's face which broke his heart, hooking his finger beneath her chin he made her look up at him before he leant forward and pressed a soft kiss to her lips.

She was taken aback by the action and her body stiffened before she slowly relaxed and was just about to return the kiss when they were interrupted, "Excuse me, your sandwiches are done."

The two pulled back and the air quickly got frosty and uncomfortable between them with things having taken an unexpected twist and neither knowing how to respond to it.

Paul got out his wallet and paid for the sandwiches as Stephanie grabbed them from the counter and turned around to see that Luke was no longer there so she headed for the door to create some distance between them.

As soon as he'd paid Paul turned around to see Stephanie halfway to the door, "Wait for me." There was no way he was letting her leave the shop without him being directly by her side even if things between them were now weird and uncomfortable.

Stephanie chewed on her lip nervously as she waited for him to catch up before they walked back to the office in complete silence.


	15. Chapter 15

The walk back to the office was made in complete silence, the elevator ride back up to Stephanie's office was taken in complete silence and the walk back to her office was also made in silence as neither knew how to approach what just happened between them.

Paul let Stephanie walk into the office before him and he watched as she placed all of the sandwiches on the desk before picking up her own and walking into her office and shutting the door behind her and he hung his head in sadness and confusion.

Shawn had watched them return and it was hard not to notice the funny atmosphere that now hung between them, "What's wrong Paul?"

Paul lifted his head at the sound of his name, "Huh?"

"I asked what was wrong? Did something happen whilst you were out?"

"No . . . yes . . . I don't know."

Shawn got up from his seat at the desk utterly confused, "You don't know? How can you not know if something happened?"

Paul sighed heavily, "It's nothing . . . I think."

Unsurprisingly Shawn wasn't convinced by Paul's less than confident answer which left him with an uneasy feeling in his stomach, "Talk to me. You know I'm your best friend and no matter what you say it won't change anything."

Paul shook his head, "It's nothing like that. I don't want to talk about it though so let's just eat lunch and get back to work."

Shawn shrugged, "If that's what you want. If you decide you do want to talk about it I'm all ears."

Paul grabbed his sandwich before he sat down heavily in his chair and ripped it open taking a massive bite as his mind drifted back to the kiss and how soft her lips felt against his. Paul shook his head to rid those memories from his mind, she was his boss and nothing more.

Stephanie was sat in her office staring out of the window. The last thing she had expected Paul to do was to kiss her and it completely threw her as she actually felt something in the kiss, something she had not felt in a long time. She slowly picked at her sandwich not really having the appetite for it any more after the kiss and having Luke so close to her, she knew he was following her but she didn't realise just how closely.

The afternoon seemed to be passing slowly for Paul, every time he looked at the clock it seemed to be the same time as the time he looked before so by the time five o'clock came he was desperate to get out of there. He gathered his things together to head home but first he needed to see if it was okay for him to leave as Shawn had said he was going to stick around until Stephanie left as he had some research he wanted to do.

Paul knocked on the door to Stephanie's office and waited until she let him in which didn't take long. As he stepped into her office he suddenly felt shy and out of place, "I . . . uh . . . I'm going to head home if that's okay? Shawn needs to do some research for something so he said he'll walk you to your car afterwards."

Stephanie nodded her head, "That's fine Paul. I'll see you bright and early in the morning."

He nodded his head slowly, "Night Steph." He turned around to walk out of her office before stopping and turning back around, "About earlier."

She shook her head at him, "Not now, I don't want to talk about it. Goodnight Paul." She put her head back down to continue working to firmly put an end to any chance of him talk about it.

Paul walked out of the office still confused and conflicted with nobody to talk to who would understand. Grabbing his jacket he said his goodbyes to Shawn before he headed home for the night to his little girl.

Once Paul had left and the coast was clear Shawn got up and went to speak to Stephanie, somebody had to tell him what was going on.

He didn't bother knocking and waiting to be asked in he just walked in and took a seat in the chair in front of her desk, "So what happened?" Leaning back he put his feet on the desk making it clear he wasn't going anywhere.

Stephanie looked up from her work to see Shawn sat comfortably opposite her, "What are you talking about?"

"Gee I don't know, maybe the fact that the two of you went out for lunch happy and joking around and came back silent with an atmosphere between you that could be cut with a knife. I'm not stupid, I know something happened and as he won't tell me what it was you will."

She crossed her arms defensively, "Nothing happened."

"Bullshit!"

Stephanie was taken aback by the forceful response, she was not used to that sort of outburst from him.

Shawn felt bad after his little outburst, "I'm sorry. Steph I know something is going on and he's my best friend, you're the most amazing woman I have ever known and are like one of my best friends too and I can't bear the tension between you. It honestly breaks my heart because neither of you are happy any more."

Sighing heavily she put her pen down and chewed on her lip nervously trying to decide how much to tell Shawn.

He could see the conflict in her eyes, he knew something happened because he could read her like a book but he just didn't know if she was going to be truthful with him.

"Luke followed us to the park and then the sandwich shop."

"So Paul was right to go with you?"

"Yes he was."

Shawn nodded encouragingly, "But? I can see it in your eyes and sense it with your words, there's something you're not telling me."

"I made a big mistake Shawn, I led Paul on. When I saw Luke at the park I freaked out and grabbed Paul's hand thinking that if he thought this big muscular man was my new boyfriend he would leave me alone but it didn't work."

He scratched his head confused, "I don't see how that's leading him on Steph, friends hold hands all of the time."

"He kissed me."

"Oh . . . When did he do that?"

"At the sandwich shop, Luke was stood right outside and I told Paul and then he kissed me."

Shawn breathed a sigh of relief, "It was probably nothing Steph, you said it yourself you thought that if Luke thought Paul was your boyfriend he would leave you alone so Paul probably kissed you thinking along the same lines of you to try and get rid of Luke."

"I guess."

"Is there anything else to it?"

"I suppose not."

He smiled happily and took his feet off of the desk, "Good. Now hurry up to finish off so we can go home."

Stephanie smiled and nodded but the smile didn't quite reach her eyes, she was still too caught up thinking and worrying about the kiss with Paul but that went unnoticed by Shawn.

When Paul arrived home he was hoping to immerse himself in Lucy and forget all about today and what happened but as he walked inside the house he realised that it was going to be easier said than done.

Paul sat down on the couch next to his Mom as she held Lucy in her arms, "Hello my beautiful little girl. Have you been good for Grandma?"

Patricia knew her son and she knew something was wrong, "What happened?"

Paul lifted his head to look at his Mom, "Huh?" He reached to take Lucy from his Mom but she turned her body preventing him from doing so, "Mom, give me my daughter."

"No. You're planning to take her and run away from something. What happened?"

He rubbed his temples, "It's nothing, I'm just over thinking it."

"Well it might help you to talk about it and then you won't over think it and I'll let you have your daughter back."

He laughed, "You've resorted to blackmail have you?"

She smiled and nodded, "If it gets me what I want I will resort to anything I have to. Now spill Paul."

Paul rested his elbow on the back of the couch leaning his head on his hand and reached to play with Lucy's feet with his other hand, "You know how I mentioned Steph was being stalked by her ex?"

"Yes I do, what about it?"

"Stephanie needed some fresh air so as I didn't trust her ex after calling and sending flowers so I went with her. We went to the park and Stephanie got an ice cream and then she saw her ex and he freaked her out so she held my hand but she never told me anything."

"Wait, she grabbed your hand and held it but didn't tell you why?"

"Exactly. After the park we went to get sandwiches for lunch and she saw her ex outside the window and buried her face in my chest and eventually told me what had happened and why she had held my hand and how she was hoping it would make him leave her alone and it didn't so I kissed her."

Startled his Mom exclaimed, "You kissed her?"

"It wasn't like that . . . to start with. Mom I only kissed her to try and get her ex to go away but . . ."

"But now you're feeling things you really shouldn't be feeling for your boss?"

Paul hung his head unable to answer her as he felt so ashamed.

Patricia touched his arm, "There's nothing to be ashamed of Paul."

He sighed and lifted his head to look at his Mom deciding to be completely truthful, "I fancied her from the minute I met her on the street as she is an incredibly attractive woman, she has the most amazing personality and she gets me, she just gets me. I've really fu . . .messed things up haven't I?"

She shook her head, "You've not messed anything up Paul, you never know she might feel the same way as you do."

"She doesn't Mom, she's avoided me all afternoon and when I tried to mention it she shut me down."

"You don't know how she feels Paul. The two of you need to clear the air if nothing so you **have** to make her talk to you about it because you can't adequately protect her if things are still so strained between you so I suggest that is the first thing you do tomorrow."

Paul rubbed his face wearily, "I suppose you're right."

"I most certainly am right, a Mother knows everything."

"Well if you know everything you'll know that I'm fucked."

Patricia shook her head at her son, "Less of the language around your daughter but you're not that word, you will be fine."

He frowned, "The minute she gets wind of the fact that I fancy her then I'm dead, I just know it." With that Paul took Lucy from his Mom's arms and left the room to contemplate his fate.


	16. Chapter 16

Paul had spent the night tossing and turning unable to get much sleep as his mind was plagued with images of Stephanie and thoughts of what she would do to him when she found out he liked her, none of the thoughts were very pleasant.

When he got up with the alarm clock the next morning it was actually the last thing he wanted to be doing as staying in bed all day and avoiding work sounded so appealing but it had to be done. He reluctantly he threw the covers off of himself and rolled out of bed and went about his morning routine.

Paul had a quick glance at the clock as he finished eating his breakfast and feeding Lucy at the same time, "looks like Daddy needs to get going to work Lucy. You be a good girl for your Grandma and I will see you tonight." He stood up and pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head before turning to his Mom who was stood at the sink. "I shouldn't be late tonight but if you need anything call me."

Patricia turned her head and nodded, "of course Paul. Don't forget to talk to Stephanie."

"Leave it alone Mom, goodbye." With that he made a quick exit from the kitchen before she could lecture him.

As soon as Paul had left the room Lucy banged happily on the tray of her high chair causing Patricia to laugh, "yes I know baby girl, you're saying bye bye to your Daddy in your own way huh? Your Daddy doesn't know me very well if he thinks I'm going to let him get away with hiding his feelings to avoid putting himself out there again." She picked up the towel and dried her hands before she picked Lucy up from the high chair, "we've got some planning to do as we have a party to throw."

Paul walked into the office stopping dead as he saw Stephanie bent over the desk in front of him. His eyes slowly travelled down her back, over her ass and down her long slim legs and he bit back a groan, she looked as beautiful from this angle as she did from the front.

Stephanie felt eyes on her so slowly she stood up and turned to see who it was breathing a sigh of relief when she saw it was Paul, "oh it's just you, you had me worried."

He shook his head to bring his mind back to reality, "yes it is me. Shawn not here yet?"

"Not unless he's hiding from me, why?"

Paul chuckled softly, "I . . . um . . . can we talk?"

She grabbed the file from the desk, "of course." She then headed for her office with Paul following close behind.

Once they were in the safety of her office Paul shut the door before taking a seat, "it's about yesterday."

She sat forward in her chair slightly and leant on the desk, "yeah about that Paul, I wanted to thank you for going the extra mile to get Luke off of my back, it really helped and made me feel a lot better about everything knowing I had such a good friend in you."

He felt like the wind had been taken completely out of his sails as soon as the word 'friend' passed her lips and he no longer felt he could say what he wanted or needed to say, "it was nothing Stephanie, honestly anybody would do it for their _friend_ and I'd do it all over again if you were in danger like that."

"Thank you. I know it's a cliché to say it but thank you just doesn't seem to say everything I'm feeling but thank you all of the same. Is there anything else?"

"No, no that's everything thanks."

With that he got up from the seat and walked out of the room.

After leaving Stephanie's office he sat down at his desk and put his head in his hands, after her saying the dreaded f word there was no way she had feelings for him which meant he needed to curb his feelings for her and fast.

Shawn hurried into the office a little late having forgotten to set the alarm clock the night before, "I'm sorry I'm late man, I forgot to set the alarm clock."

Paul lifted his head from his hands and quickly made out like he was busy, "oh it's nothing dude, you didn't miss anything."

Shawn looked Paul up and down, "you look like death."

Paul couldn't help but laugh at his bluntness, "thanks, I love you too."

"I didn't mean it like that Paul, you really do look pretty terrible. Did the little lady in your life keep you up last night?"

"Uh yeah, something like that." Sure Stephanie wasn't technically his 'little lady' and Shawn wasn't actually talking about Stephanie but about Lucy but there was no way he was putting himself through the humiliation of admitting to Shawn he had feelings for Stephanie.

Shawn sat his things down on the chair next to Paul, "you need a coffee, you keep drifting off on me. I will be back in a minute with some for you."

"No! Shawn I need coffee to wake me up not to poison me so I'll go and make it. I may as well make Stephanie one whilst I'm there, do you want one?"

"I'd kill for one, I skipped coffee and breakfast."

Paul nodded getting up from his seat and going to make some strong coffee for himself and regular coffee for everyone else.

Once he had his coffee Paul went on with his day focussing completely on work not letting anything distract him.

Come lunchtime Stephanie's office door opened and she walked out, "Paul, do you want to come and grab lunch with me? I need a walk to stretch my legs."

Paul lifted his head from his work slightly startled, "I . . . uh . . . umm I've got work to do, I'm sure Shawn will come with you."

Shawn looked at Paul strangely, "Are you okay? You sound a little . . . weird."

"I'm fine, honest, I just need to get this work done."

Stephanie shrugged, "well you can take a break, it will still be there when you return."

Paul shook his head, "no it's okay, I really want to get this out of the way."

"Shawn?"

Shawn grabbed his jacket, "I'm all yours Princess."

With that Shawn and Stephanie left the office, as soon as they did Paul let out a deep breath, "so glad I avoided that."

Once they were away from the office Stephanie turned to Shawn, "Is it me or is something wrong with Paul?"

Shawn stopped, "I don't know. When I came in this morning Paul was a bit off and looked pretty dreadful and he did seem funny then when you asked him to come with you, it could all be because Lucy kept him up last night."

"I guess, I hope. Shawn I don't want to lose him, I really hope I've not messed things up."

He shook his head, "you won't have, Paul's not like that so just relax and enjoy the fresh air."

Stephanie nodded and the two started walking again. Once they had lunch Shawn and Stephanie returned to the office.

Whilst Shawn was eating his lunch he carefully watched Paul who seemed to be acting more normal than he had been earlier so he pushed Stephanie's concerns to the back of his mind as her being a paranoid woman with an over-active imagination and just focussed on the job at hand.

Once the work day finished Paul headed home but as he stepped through the door he noticed the hive of activity that was going on so he headed off in search of his Mom. He found her in the kitchen giving orders to his nephew, "it's good to see you Pete. Mom what are you doing to this poor boy?"

Patricia laughed at her son, "he's helping me make plans for the party."

"The party? What party?"

"The one I'm holding on Saturday to celebrate your new job. I already called Rebecca and invited her, Shawn and Cameron and she said she would pass the word on to Stephanie for me to invite her and her son. Peter you can go and sit down now if you like, I think that will be enough for today."

Peter smiled at his Grandma, "sure, I'll go and keep Neysa company with Lucy." He then headed off to the lounge.

As Peter left the kitchen Patricia shut the door, "so did you talk to Stephanie?"

Paul sighed heavily, "yes."

"And?"

"And she mentioned the f word, she doesn't see me as anything other than that."

"Do you know that for certain? Did you tell her how you felt?"

"Well no but I didn't need to."

Patricia rolled her eyes, "you're impossible. Maybe at this party you can be honest with her."

Paul rubbed his temples really not wanting to argue with his Mom when he felt like crap so turned and left the kitchen before quickly heading into the lounge and picking Lucy up before he headed upstairs and shut his bedroom door.

Once he was safely alone in his room he placed Lucy on the bed and pulled out his phone scrolling through the address book before coming across who he was looking for and calling them.

Paul was just about to bottle it and hang up when he heard, "Paul?"

"Yeah it's me, look I need a favour."


	17. Chapter 17

Kara had just gotten in after a long day at work and an even longer week. Staring at the bag sitting at the bottom of the stairs taunting her was not helping her mood so she went straight for the kitchen pouring herself a glass of wine before going into the lounge kicking her shoes off and relaxing on the couch taking a sip of wine.

The wine was slowly making its way into her system relaxing her when she felt her phone vibrate against her hip, as she pulled it out she hoped it was not work but the name scrolling across the screen was definitely not work and definitely not somebody she expected to hear from, "Paul?"

"Yeah it's me, look I need a favour."

Kara laughed softly, "need bailing out of jail do you?"

"Ha ha! You're so cute and funny aren't you?"

"Well come on Paul can you blame me? The last time I actually spoke to you was roughly six months ago, don't get me wrong I'm not having a go because I know why you don't call and it's the same reason I don't call you so it has to be big if you are calling me."

"It's not big as such . . ."

"But? How about you start from the beginning and tell me what's going on."

Paul sighed heavily and stretched his legs either side of Lucy to keep her safe before he leant back against the pillows, "I've got a new job."

"That's great news Paul, as a graphic designer?"

"Not really, kind of as a PA for someone. Graphic design is too much work right now with my lack of housing and with Lucy being just six months old."

"Talking of Lucy, thank you for the picture you sent me the other day, she's so cute. You can get on with your story now."

He laughed, "she is really cute, just like her Daddy but thank you. Anyway I've got this job and my Mom is throwing a party to celebrate and I wondered if you wanted to come."

"What's the catch? You know your Mom hates me after what happened so why do you want to invite me?"

"Uh . . . umm . . . I kind of have a bit of a crush on my boss and my Mom is trying to set me up with her and she thinks this party will make me open up to my boss so I was kind of hoping you'd come as my 'date' and honestly it really would be nice to see you, I miss you."

"I miss you too Paul so I would love to come but one question, are we acting like a couple on a date or am I there to give the impression to your boss that you have a girlfriend to make her jealous?"

Paul rubbed his chin, "none of the above . . . kind of. I need you there to protect me from my Mom and to make sure I don't embarass myself in front of Steph, my boss."

Kara took another sip of wine not sure if she should ask this or not but the silence gave away that she was thinking too much, "what are you thinking Kara? You're never normally this quiet unless you're unsure of whether you should speak your mind."

"Okay fine, you asked for this. How do you know your boss doesn't like you back?"

"She called me a friend, it's a long story that I can't really go in to but calling me a friend in the situation really made it obvious she doesn't like me like that."

Just then Lucy started to fuss as she was getting tired and she didn't like the lack of attention she was getting, "looks like someone wants their Daddy to pay them some attention. You are a terrible Father Paul."

Paul snorted as he balanced the phone between his ear and shoulder and picked Lucy up, "shut up Kara, you are a terrible Aunt so there."

She stifled a yawn of her own, "if your Mom didn't hate me so much and if work wasn't sending me here, there and everywhere else on a monthly basis I would actually have time to hang out with my adopted niece and my best friend."

"I know you would and I'm only messing with you. I am really looking forward to seeing you again, I've missed you and our little chats. Hopefully after Saturday my Mom will like you again and you can come over to visit as I'd really like you to be in Lucy's life and be the positive influence I know you would be for her."

Kara couldn't stifle the yawn that came next, "I'm sorry Paul, I've been out of town and my flight back home got delayed so I didn't arrive home until 6:30 this morning and then I went to work so I am a little tired but I swear I would love to hang out with you and Lucy more."

"In that case I'll let you go but I'll text you tomorrow what time the party starts."

"Sounds good. Give Lucy a kiss from me and I'll see you Saturday."

"Will do, take care Kara."

The two of them hung up allowing Paul to throw his phone down on the bed and shift Lucy in his arms so she was now facing him, "somebody needs a bath and bed because you've clearly had too much excitement today." Holding Lucy close to his chest he got up and went to run her a bath.

The next morning Paul walked into work at the same time as Shawn, "so Rebecca told me about the party your Mom is throwing."

"Urrggghh yes, I don't know why she is throwing a party, it's not a big deal but whatever, it'll be good to hang out with people again. Do you know if Steph's coming?"

"No idea, why?"

"No reason, just wondered."

"Oh I see. I know I'm looking forward to seeing Lucy again, she's probably grown so much in the last week."

Paul didn't notice Stephanie's office door open as they walked in, "she's growing like a little weed."

From behind him came, "judging by the size of her Father I'm not surprised."

Paul jumped a mile and spun around, "Jesus Steph, you nearly gave me a heart attack."

Shawn just laughed at him, "so Paul wants to know if you're coming tomorrow?"

"Yeah about that, was it a serious offer from your Mom Paul?"

Paul nodded, "oh yeah, my Mom is going all out for this party to celebrate my new job so let's just hope you keep me on."

She smiled at him, "don't worry, you're pretty secure in this job. Are you sure it's okay to bring Alex too?"

Shawn butted in, "oh yeah, you'd better bring him. If you want you can leave for the party first and we'll swing by and pick Alex up after you've left so if Luke is following you he won't see him."

"That'd be great Shawn, thank you. I'm actually really looking forward to tomorrow to meet your Mom properly and see a little more of your gorgeous daughter."

Shawn pouted, "what about hanging out with me? Aren't you excited to do that?"

"Truthfully no."

Paul stifled a laugh and slapped Shawn on the back, "don't worry man, even though Steph's not looking forward to seeing your ugly mug again tomorrow I am, you'll be surprised by the blast from the past that's coming too."

Shawn's interest was immediately piqued, "who? Who? Who?"

"Kara."

"Kara? No way. That's a name I've not heard in a while."

Stephanie was confused, "who's Kara?"

Paul shrugged playing it cool, "a really close friend of mine from way back."

Shawn shook his head, "close friend? Dude you're talking out of your ass, she was so much more than that and judging by the fact that she's going to be there she is clearly still way more than that too."

Paul pretended to zip his lips, "I'm not saying a word."

Neither man noticed the hurt look that crossed Stephanie's face at Shawn and Paul's words or the way she slowly backed up back into the safety of her office.


	18. Chapter 18

Saturday morning came and Paul was already ready to tear his hair out, his Mom was being so demanding wanting everything to be perfect as she wanted to impress Stephanie so much. He slipped away from the mania that was downstairs with Lucy to change her into something pretty for the party.

Whilst Paul was upstairs getting Lucy changed the doorbell rang, thinking it was her daughter Patricia just swung the door open, "about damn time you got here."

Kara stood there wide eyed, "Paul told me it didn't start for half an hour, I came early to see if you needed help."

"Oh no he didn't. What the hell are you doing here?"

"Paul invited me. I know we've not always seen eye to eye Mrs Levesque but Paul and I have put the past behind us and moved on."

Coming down the stairs behind his Mom Paul shook his head, "yes Mom, we've put the past behind us so please just let her in and be nice to her."

Patricia reluctantly stepped aside and let Kara in only able to watch as she practically skipped over to Paul grabbing him in a massive bear hug, "I've missed you."

Paul returned the hug holding Kara just as tightly and kissing her cheek, "I missed you too. I've just put Lucy down for a nap so hopefully she'll wake up in about an hour and won't be cranky during the party. Come on you and you can help me in the kitchen."

Everyone immersed themselves in final preparations for the party with Paul and Kara remaining in the kitchen far away from his Mom until more guests arrive.

One of the first people to arrive was Stephanie which made Patricia very happy so she could get her son out of Kara's clutches. As she opened the door to Stephanie she smiled brightly, "Stephanie, it's so good to see you. Is your son not with you?"

"Oh no he'll be here, Shawn's going to pick him up and bring him. I hope I'm not early."

"No dear, you're right on time. Let's get you a drink from the kitchen."

Patricia happily led Stephanie through to the kitchen, "Paul look who's here."

Paul spun around at the sound of his Mom's voice and smiled seeing Stephanie there, "hi Steph." He hugged Stephanie briefly before stepping back to get a funny look from his Mom.

"Are you going to get her a drink or not?"

"Okay okay Mom. What would you like to drink Steph?"

Stephanie could sense an unusual tension in the room but she didn't know why, "umm orange juice would be good thanks."

Luckily for Paul the doorbell rang and his Mom left to answer it so he turned to Kara, "You can get that can't you?"

Kara looked at him like he had three heads , "what did your last slave die of Paul?"

Stephanie butt in, "over work and under paid probably."

Kara laughed whilst Paul looked mock offended, "I think I like this lady already."

Paul huffed, "you would. Kara this is Stephanie my boss, Stephanie this is Kara."

"**The** Kara?"

Kara raised her eyebrow, "**the** Kara? Whatever he's told you about me Stephanie is all lies."

He rolled his eyes, "we were talking about you in work yesterday, I was telling Shawn how you were coming, I said nothing bad thank you very much." With that he stuck his tongue out at her and grabbed a glass to get Stephanie a drink before leading her to the lounge where the main party was going to start.

Soon after Stephanie arrived Shawn, Rebecca and the boys arrived along with a number of other guests which kept Paul pretty occupied letting Kara just observe people including Stephanie with the young boy.

Shawn had just gotten a few drinks for the boys and Rebecca and noticed Kara staring at Stephanie, "long time no see."

Kara smiled hugging Shawn, "yeah it has been. How are you?"

"I'm good thanks, life's really good. How about you?"

"I can't complain I guess, I'm just really busy at work. I knew you had one little boy, I didn't realise you had two."

Shawn followed Kara's gaze to where she was watching Cameron sit on Rebecca's lap and Alex sitting on Stephanie's, "oh no he's not mine, that's Stephanie's little boy."

"But she came alone and he came with you."

"Long story, you really don't want to go there but he is one hundred percent not my little boy by blood or relation or anything like that but I do love him as if he were my own and I love Stephanie like she was my sister."

"Is she dating anyone?"

"Why? Are you interested?"

She rolled her eyes, "cute Shawn, real cute."

"No she's single, I don't think she wants to get into another relationship to be honest."

"Fair enough."

With that Shawn went back to his family.

A short while later the boys were all outside playing ball so Stephanie headed upstairs to use the bathroom. As she reached the top of the stairs to go back downstairs she heard whimpering so she headed in the general direction of the sound gently pushing the door into the nursery open and walking over to the crib seeing Lucy laying on her back clearly wanting some attention so she gently picked her up, "let's go and find your Daddy for you."

Lucy was still a little sleepy so she just lay her head on Stephanie's shoulder and clung to her top as Stephanie took her downstairs.

As she reached the bottom of the stairs Stephanie came face to face with Patricia, "I . . . uh . . . she was whimpering, I didn't think Paul could hear her on the monitor so I brought her down to him."

"That's fine. He's in the lounge."

Stephanie nodded almost nervously and walked into the lounge heading straight for Paul, "somebody wants their Daddy."

Paul's head spun around so fast he thought it was going to fly off, "what the . . . oh hello baby girl." He turned around completely and stroked Lucy's back gently, "thank you, I didn't know she'd woken."

"It's okay, I was upstairs anyway so I thought I'd bring her down to you."

He carefully lifted Lucy from Stephanie's arms and kissed the top of her head, "thank you again." He went to sit down on the couch next to Rebecca allowing Lucy chance to wake up fully before she inevitably got passed around.

Stephanie stepped back to watch Paul with Lucy unaware that she was now stood right next to Kara, "he's a great Dad isn't he?"

Stephanie turned her head and smiled at the blonde she met earlier, "he certainly seems it but you'd know better than me as his girlfriend."

Kara's eyes nearly popped out of her head, "excuse me? We're not dating."

"But the way he was talking about you yesterday and the way you were together in the kitchen I just assumed."

"Yeah we're not together now. In the past we were but I really messed things up and am lucky he even talks to me any more but being the amazing guy Paul is he forgave me, not that I can say the same thing for his Mom though."

"Do you mind me asking what happened?"

"We were dating and I pretty much broke his heart, it was a stupid mistake on my part and a half misunderstanding on his which led to us not talking for nearly a year before I eventually got him to listen to me and we got to the point where we could be friends. There's nothing romantic between us any more, we're just really good friends."

It was hard for Kara not to notice the strange line of questioning which made her wonder if things were as cut and dry as Paul thought they were.


	19. Chapter 19

The party was going well, the women were in the lounge enjoying time with Lucy and talking and the boys were all in the garden playing football and everybody was having a fabulous time.

Paul and Shawn decided to bring Alex and Cameron back inside to allow the older boys to be a bit rougher in their game so the four of them walked through to the house. Paul was trailing a little behind Shawn and the boys so when the doorbell rang it was only logical to him for him to get it.

As Paul opened the door he tried to hide the shock with who was the other side, "may I help?"

"Yeah hi, I was told Stephanie was here and I just wanted to have a quick word with her."

"Umm okay. Who are you?"

"Steve, my name's Steve and I'm an old friend of hers."

"Well unfortunately this is a family party and I personally don't know you so I'd rather not let you in. I'll let Stephanie know you were here and she can take things from there. Sorry about that."

With that Paul shut the door in his face and turned around taking a deep breath before he walked into the lounge, "Shawn, do you want to help me get some drinks please?"

Kara frowned as she could see the difference in Paul and she wanted to help him, "it's okay Shawn, I'll help him."

"No Shawn will help me, won't you _Shawn_?"

Shawn could sense the urgency in his voice so he quickly pushed himself up from the floor, "sure." He followed Paul out of the room and to the kitchen.

As soon as Shawn was in the kitchen Paul shut the door, "We have a problem. We had a visit from 'Steve' just now."

"Steve? Steve who? I don't know a Steve?"

"Oh that's right you wouldn't, you'd know him as Luke."

Shawn's eyes widened, "Not the Luke."

Paul nodded, "**The** Luke. Apparently he thought I was stupid and didn't think I'd know who he was so he gave a false name so I would hopefully let him in to see Steph."

"That man's balls are bigger than watermelons. I don't want to tell Stephanie he was here, she's so relaxed and having such a good time it would really ruin it for her."

"I agree but I wanted you to know because if you know too then we can both be on the lookout and protect her."

"The only problem we have is if he tries ringing the doorbell again and your Mom answers."

Just then the door opened and Stephanie stuck her head in, "are you two pouring drinks or making them from scratch."

Shawn forced a laugh, "sorry, we got distracted talking sports."

She made a face, "well I'm going back into the lounge, I just wanted to make sure you didn't get lost or something because Alex and Cameron are thirsty."

"We're coming now, I promise."

Shawn looked at Paul as Stephanie closed the door again, "see what I mean?"

"Yeah I do. I'll talk to my Mom and make sure she nor anybody else answers the door."

"Good."

The two of them then made a tray of drinks to take to the apparent thirsty masses.

Paul was on edge once they went back into the lounge, he tried to relax but watching Stephanie so relaxed and happy whilst being completely oblivious to what had gone down was hard.

Kara had noticed Paul's pretty sombre mood so went and sat next to him laying her head on his shoulder, "what are you thinking?"

Paul wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on the top of her head, "I'm thinking there are people in this world completely messed up who need a really good beating."

She lifted her head and looked at him, "but you won't beat anybody up right?"

"I can't make any promises."

She framed his face with her hands, "Paul please, think of Lucy. She's already lost one parent, she can't lose you too."

He sighed heavily, "I know but when someone is threatening the health and well-being of someone I care about." His eyes drifted to Stephanie as she sat on the couch with Lucy on her lap, Alex beside her and a smile on her face, "I want to protect them."

Kara followed his gaze, "what's going on with Stephanie?"

Luckily for Paul the doorbell rang so he managed to escape without answering the question so he could open the door, "Mrs Russell, are we making too much noise for you?"

"How many times have I told you Paul? Call me Dotty. It's not that though, may I come in?"

"Sorry Dotty and of course." Paul stepped aside and allowed his elderly neighbour into the hallway, "so what's wrong?"

"I know you'll think I'm being nosey but there was a gentleman who came to your door, someone spoke to him briefly before he then left and went and sat in his car."

He nodded his head knowing who she meant, "yes there was. Is there a problem?"

"Yes, he's sat outside in his car and his mere presence is intimidating. I'm supposed to be going shopping but I don't feel safe. Do you know when he's leaving?"

Paul sighed and rubbed his temples gently, "as soon as the cops can get rid of him I assume."

Just then Shawn walked out of the lounge to check on things, "is everything okay?"

"Sure. Shawn can you take Mrs . . . Dotty into the lounge please whilst I make a quick phone call."

Paul grabbed the phone from the table and went into the kitchen to call the cops in the hope that they would get rid of Luke as he was intimidating the neighbours.

Once Paul had rung the cops he went back into the lounge and sat on the arm of the couch so he could see out of the window much to his Mom's annoyance, "what have I told you about sitting on the arms of the furniture Paul?"

"Not to do it?"

"Exactly, so why are you doing it?"

"I want to see out of the window?"

Patricia rolled her eyes at his son, "you break it and you buy new."

Stephanie couldn't help but giggle at the little exchange, "never too old to get told off I see."

Paul stuck his tongue out at her before lifting Lucy out of her arms, "for that there's no more snuggle time for you."

She pouted, "that's not fair."

Seeing his Mom pouting Alex clambered into Stephanie's lap and hugged her, "I snuggle you."

She kissed the top of his head, "thank you baby. Mommy loves you very much."

Paul didn't have much time to enjoy a cuddle with Lucy as soon his Mom was taking her off him, "I don't even get a cuddle with my own daughter, so not cool."

Patricia rolled her eyes, "you will get a cuddle later so just calm yourself down."

Just then the cop car caught Paul's eye so he turned his head and watched as the cop got out and went to the car where Luke was obviously sat and talked with him before he noticed Luke pull off and he breathed a sigh of relief, that was one less thing to worry about.

Shawn put his hand on Paul's shoulder, "what are you doing?

"The eagle has left the building."

Everyone within earshot looked at Paul strangely but Shawn just nodded knowingly.

"Dotty you should be safe to go shopping now, the trash has been taken out."

Dotty smiled appreciatively at him, "thank you Paul, you're a good boy."

Paul got up to watch her out, "If you need anything or he comes back don't hesitate to come back."

She hugged him gently, "if you need a babysitter ever my door is always open to you."

"Thank you, that is very kind of you."

Soon after Dotty left the party started winding down and other people started leaving also until soon it was just Paul, his parents, Shawn and his family, Stephanie and Alex and Kara left.

"So how can we help?"

Patricia frowned, "you're not helping, Paul will help."

Paul laughed, "come on Mom, can't they help tidy a little."

"Fine, if you really want to help you can take the dishes into the kitchen and then I will wash them up later."

The adults set about clearing the dishes whilst the two boys sat on the floor playing with some of Paul's old cars and Lucy lay in the little bouncy chair he had for her.

"As much fun as I had this afternoon Paul and as great as it was seeing you again Kara I think we need to get going to get Cam some dinner and ready for bed. I'll see you on Monday Paul? I'll pop up in my lunch hour to check up on you."

Paul laughed at Shawn, "I'll be the model employee who you don't need to check up on thank you very much. Are you going to drop Alex home too?"

"Of course, if Steph wants me to."

Stephanie smiled softly, "you have the car seat in your car, I really can't be bothered to change it over so if you don't mind?"

"Never, it's my pleasure. Come on boys, let's go."

Shawn and the boys headed out to the car whilst Rebecca gave Paul and Stephanie a hug and then followed them.

Once Rebecca had left Stephanie turned to Paul, "thank you for today, I have had such a wonderful time and this is the most relaxed I have felt in months."

"You're welcome. I'm so glad you had a good time. If you want another snuggle with Lucy before you go go right ahead, it'd be best to leave five minutes or so between Shawn leaving and you leaving."

"I think I'll do that, thank you."

Once Stephanie was in the lounge Kara turned to Paul, "you do know everything is never quite what it seems right?"

Paul groaned, "oh no, here's comes the psycho babble."

She rolled her eyes at him, "Paul I am serious. Sometimes things aren't what they appear to be and you have to delve a little deeper to get to the truth. Don't count anything out with Stephanie, delve a little deeper."

"Uh okay, whatever you say Kara. Will you come around again soon?"

"As long as your Mum doesn't mind I'll come around next Saturday."

"She won't mind, I promise."

The two hugged before Kara left leaving Stephanie the only remaining guest.

Paul went into the lounge and sat next to her on the couch as she cuddled a very sleepy Lucy, "you'll have trouble with this one tonight."

He shrugged at Stephanie's comment, "oh well, I had a good time and so did she so it is worth it."

"Did you really have a good time? About half way through you seemed to get quite down and a little angry."

"That was nothing, I just have a low tolerance for stupid people sometimes."

"What was with the comment to your neighbour about the trash being removed?"

"It was nothing, she just felt intimidated by the presence of somebody on the street so I had them removed."

"I see. Well I'd better go home to my little boy as I think he's probably ready for bed. I'll see you bright and early Monday."

Paul smiled and took Lucy from Stephanie, "of course. Thank you for coming and have a safe drive home. Can you text me when you get home to let me know you get home safely please?"

"Uh sure, if it would make you happy."

"It would, very happy."

She nodded, "then a text announcing my safe arrival at home is what you will get."

He smiled and hugged her tightly before walking her to the door and watching as she left and got in the car, only allowing himself to shut the door once she was safely in her car and on her way.

As soon as she was gone Paul shut the door and leant against it closing his eyes, his stomach was in knots and he was scared to death that Stephanie wouldn't get home safely.


	20. Chapter 20

Stephanie was smiling as she drove her car away from Paul's house, she had had the best afternoon hanging out with him and his family and friends and she learnt a lot about him from other people. As she got onto the main road after pulling out of his street Stephanie noticed a car pull out behind her but thought nothing of it as she turned the radio on and happily sang along to the song they were playing.

As she made her way across town she couldn't help but notice that the same car that had pulled out behind her near Paul's house was still behind her so when she stopped at traffic lights she took the opportunity to look in her mirror to see if she recognised the driver, unfortunately they had a baseball cap on which obscured her view of them but it gave her an uneasy feeling.

Stephanie took a detour to try and shake the car but it still followed her. She was relieved as she pulled into her parents drive knowing she would be somewhat safe now. As she turned the engine off and got out of the car she noticed the car that had been following had stopped across the road and as she looked over at it whoever was driving it pulled off. She grabbed her bag from the seat and hurriedly locked the car and headed inside the safety of the house suddenly feeling very uneasy.

Once she opened the front door she couldn't help but smile hearing Alex's happy chatter filtering from the lounge where he was clearly filling his Grandparents in on his afternoon.

As Stephanie walked into the lounge she felt her parents eyes trained on her, "Alex was telling us about your afternoon."

"I did tell you we were going to a party with Shawn." She pulled her phone out of her bag and started to text Paul.

Her Mum frowned, "who are you texting?"

"Paul."

Linda raised her eyebrow, "Paul? Who's Paul?"

Before Stephanie had chance to answer Alex jumped in, "he's big and tall and scary looking but he's funny and goofy and he has a daughter and he's friends with Uncle Shawn and Cam thinks he rules."

Stephanie couldn't help but laugh at her son, "remember to breathe Alex."

"But I was breathing Mommy."

Linda couldn't help but smile at her Grandson, she was biased but she thought he was the cutest little boy ever, "so you liked him do you Alex?"

Alex nodded enthusiastically, "he played football with me and Cam."

Linda turned her attention to her daughter, "so is he your new boyfriend?"

Stephanie's head snapped up from where she was looking at her phone and her eyes widened, "what? No way! Jesus Mom, he's my new PA because Shawn wants a new challenge so is moving to a different part of the company."

"You like him though don't you?"

"What? No way, he's just an employee."

"You are allowed to be happy Stephanie. I know everything that happened in the past rocked your confidence but I've noticed the difference with you over the past week and it is clear to me as your Mother that there is somebody special in your life. Don't punish yourself for what happened, let yourself be happy if not for me or for yourself do it for Alex, he deserves a real Father in his life."

Stephanie sighed heavily and quickly finished her text to Paul '_Home safely, Steph xxxxx_' and sent it before standing up, "come on Alex, let's get you bathed and ready for bed and then we'll get you some dinner." She then took her sons hand and led him out of the room and up the stairs before the inquisition could continue.

Once Stephanie had left Paul was anxious, deep down he knew he was being completely ridiculous but he couldn't help himself.

He went into the kitchen and made Lucy a bottle but as he did so every five seconds he was checking his phone to make sure he didn't miss a call or text from Stephanie. As soon as the bottle was ready he took it into the lounge to feed Lucy to then get her ready for bed.

Paul Sr had been drying the dishes to stop the earache he was getting from his wife for not doing anything as Paul made Lucy's bottle and although it may have gone unnoticed by his wife he most certainly had noticed the way his son was obsessively checking his phone, "you don't mind if I finish the rest of these dishes in a minute do you dear? I just have something I need to discuss with Paul."

Patricia frowned at her husband, "slacking as usual I see. You had better do these dishes after or you are sleeping on the couch."

He mock saluted his wife, "yes dear, whatever you say dear." Paul Sr then walked through to the lounge making sure to keep the door open as he entered so his wife couldn't eavesdrop on their conversation.

Paul was sat on the couch getting Lucy comfortable in his arms when he noticed his Dad walk in, "escape already have you?"

Paul Sr laughed at his son, "you bet. Your Mom can be a real pain in the neck sometimes."

"Yeah tell me about it."

The two fell into a comfortable silence as Paul started to feed Lucy but every five seconds as he did so his eyes drifted to his phone which was on the arm of the chair right by the side of him.

"Son, you do know watching that phone won't make it ring right?"

Paul looked up at his Dad, "I'm not watching it."

"Yeah and I'm the next Martha Stewart."

"Okay okay fine, maybe I am watching it but I'm waiting for a call or text from Steph."

"She only left here five minutes ago."

"I know but I want to make sure she gets home okay."

Paul Sr raised his eyebrow, "have you extended this to Kara as well or is it just Stephanie?"

"Just Stephanie."

"I see."

"It's not like that Dad."

Paul Sr put his hands up in defence, "I never said anything. You're jumping down my throat so clearly there's more to this than just friendly concern."

Paul rolled his eyes, "you've been talking to Mom I see."

"Actually I've not. Should I have?"

"No, God please don't. I love Mom but she sure knows how to meddle in my life. You do know she wanted me to make a move on Stephanie at this party today right?"

Paul Sr laughed, "sounds about right for your Mom. Why didn't you? You clearly like the woman."

"Dad! It's not like that, I'm just worried about her safety as she has somebody stalking her."

Paul Sr shook his head at his son, "you know de nile is not just a river in Egypt. You can try and fool yourself as much as you like but I am your Father and I know you, you clearly like her."

Paul groaned, "dammit, back off. I'm just trying to block out and deny any feelings I may have for her as she doesn't see me like that and I don't want to lose this job."

"You know she doesn't like you like that how exactly? Did those words come out of her mouth?"

"Well . . . not exactly those words no."

"Then you don't know it for a fact. Trust me son, I have been around this planet a lot longer than you have and I know how women work and the way that woman was looking at you today there was more than just friendliness in her eyes."

"But . . ."

Paul Sr put his hand up to silence his son, "no buts. Stop finding excuses not to put yourself out there and think of it like this. Nobody says you have to ask her out on a date, nobody says you have to declare your undying love for her but you're both single parents with young children who could both probably benefit from adult company around your own ages so if you like her as a friend and you like spending time with her why not just invite her and her son around for a play date or something. I will take your Mom out for the day so she doesn't need to know anything and you can hang out as two adults and if something romantic comes of it then great, if not then you will have both found a friend who is in the same boat as you are. Do you see where I'm coming from?"

Paul smiled softly at his Dad as he put Lucy's bottle down and picked her up to burp her, "yeah I think I do. Thanks Dad, that really helps a lot. Your advice is much better than Mom's, just don't tell her I said that."

Paul Sr laughed, "don't worry son I won't, I want to live to see Lucy grow up."

"Talking of Lucy I need to give her a bath. Could you possibly watch my phone for me please and if Steph calls answer it and explain where I am or if she texts can you read it and make sure she got home safely please?"

"Of course son, it would be my pleasure."

Paul got up with Lucy and headed upstairs to bath her and put her to bed whilst his Dad sat on the couch keeping an eye on his phone.

Not two minutes after Paul had left his phone beeped so his Dad picked it up and read the message '_Home safely, Steph xxxxx_', "sure Paul, she doesn't see you like that my eye."


	21. Chapter 21

Stephanie spent Saturday evening in her room away from her parents because she really didn't want to have to listen to them telling her she deserved to be happy, she knew she deserved to be happy but it meant putting herself out there again and this time she had Alex to think of too.

She sat at her window looking out over her parents spacious back garden. The thought of being held closely by somebody as they cuddled together on the couch really appealed to her but the last time she put herself out there emotionally with a man she ended up in hospital. Who was to say that if she put herself out there again the same thing wouldn't happen again? Sure Paul seemed nice enough but so did Luke when she got with him and all she could think of was look where that got her.

As much as it hurt maybe it would be better for her and Alex in the long run to keep herself cut off emotionally from men and not letting herself go beyond friendship so she could protect herself and protect Alex so he would at least always have her.

Sunday morning she was up early with Alex but she just didn't feel herself and her parents noticed it, "Alex, do you want to go to the park?"

"Yes pwease Grandpa."

Vince smiled at his Grandson, "well ask your Mommy if it's okay."

Alex just turned to Stephanie and gave her the puppy dog eyes that she used to give her Dad and just like her Dad used to she caved also, "yes you can baby."

Vince smiled and produced Alex's shoes from behind his back, "I knew you'd say yes."

Stephanie shook her head grabbing the shoes from her Dad and putting them on Alex.

As soon as Alex and Vince had left Stephanie headed into the kitchen to see if her Mom needed any help with the dinner, "anything I can do?"

"Sure, peel some carrots will you please?"

Stephanie grabbed the peeler and some carrots setting them down and getting to work on them in silence.

The silence didn't last long though, "I want to ask you something Steph."

"As long as it isn't about Paul then sure."

"How long are you planning to stay here? I mean you do have a whole house of your own and you haven't been working extremely long or late hours so why exactly are you staying here?"

Stephanie was taken aback by the question, "uh, I'm not sure. We can leave later if you want."

"I never said that Stephanie, you know we love having you guys here but I'm just confused."

"I just like spending time here with you guys, is that such a crime?"

"No it's not and you know we love having you here but if there's something wrong you can tell me."

Stephanie sighed and fell silence focussing all of her attention on the carrots not wanting to continue the conversation and be forced to tell her Mom the truth.

Monday morning and Stephanie walked into work taken aback to see Paul already there, "you're early."

Paul lifted his head and smiled, "I took the opportunity to leave early seeing as Lucy was still asleep after she was up for a few hours in the night."

"Oh no I'm sorry, is she okay?"

"Yeah she's fine just teething and has a little cold."

"That is the worst, I remembered when that happened to Alex, I got hardly any sleep. If you need a break just let me know."

He nodded, "thank you but I will be fine. Are you okay? You look . . . pale."

"I'm fine, honestly."

With that she turned around and walked into her office.

Paul stuck his head down and got right to work determined to make a good impression on his first day flying solo but by mid-morning he was so close to throwing the mouse through the monitor, "god-damnit you stupid pile of crap. If you don't start behaving I will be forced to throw you out of the window."

Stephanie giggled as she walked out of her office hearing him talking to a piece of equipment not sure which one it was, "so what did it do to you today?"

"The stupid damn computer won't load the saved file that I need."

She rolled her eyes and walked around the desk leaning across him tapping a few buttons and with a few clicks of the mouse and it loaded, "voilà."

Paul was leant back in his chair as she leant across him, feeling her body so close to his that he could smell her perfume gave him shivers, he just wanted to touch her or kiss the exposed skin of her neck but he couldn't as he really needed this job.

Stephanie smiled as she pulled back, "there you go, it's all loaded and you didn't have to throw it out of the window."

"Yeah thanks for that, I appreciate it."

"Well now that's sorted, can you get me some coffee please?"

"Sure, it would be my pleasure and thanks again for that."

He got up from his seat and went to make a couple of cups of coffee.

Lunchtime arrived and Paul was looking at the clock wondering how lunch was handled now it was just the two of them when Shawn walked through the door, "I come bearing gifts."

Paul laughed as he looked up and saw Shawn holding a bag and carrying a tray with three coffees on it, "you brought me my lunch? How sweet of you."

Shawn plopped himself down on the chair in front of the desk putting the bag in front of him, "I sure did, you should feel honoured."

"Yeah we feel honoured that you actually paid for something."

Shawn looked hurt whilst Paul laughed at Stephanie's comment, "she's got a point there."

"Shut up or you won't get your sandwich."

Stephanie playfully ruffled Shawn's hair as she reached into the bag and grabbed a sandwich, "so I guess I'm being relegated back to my office to eat seeing a you have taken up the chair out here."

"You could always sit on Paul's lap."

Paul clutched his stomach, "ha! Ha! You're so funny I forgot to laugh."

Shawn smirked and turned his head to look at Stephanie expecting to see her laughing too but all he saw was one of his best friends who looked on the verge of tears, "I . . . I'm going to eat in the office."

Stephanie turned around and made a hasty exit into her office shutting the door behind her before she let a solitary tear fall down her face as his words were like a dagger to her heart.

Paul watched her retreating form not entirely sure what just happened there, his thoughts were interrupted by Shawn though, "is everything okay?"

"I . . . I don't know. Everything seemed fine this morning even though she was a little pale but now she just seems funny. I'm sure it's nothing to worry about."

"Yeah I guess. I'd better go back to work though, tell Steph if she needs anything just to call me okay?"

"Yeah sure but are you sure you can't stay to eat your sandwich?"

"No it's okay, I really should go back to work and make a good impression on my first day."

With that Shawn got up grabbing his sandwich and coffee and left the office leaving Paul with a dilemma, did he go to talk to her or just leave her alone?


	22. Chapter 22

Something about Stephanie was bothering Shawn the entire walk back to his office but he couldn't put a finger on what it was, that was until he sat down at his desk with his sandwich and then he realised what it was. He flipped open his phone and scrolled through until he got to Rebecca's number and called her.

"Shawn? This is unexpected."

"Do you think Stephanie likes Paul?"

Rebecca laughed at her husband, he wasn't the most observant of people when it came to relationships and crushes so for him to come out with something like that it was out of the ordinary and quite frankly hilarious to her, "what makes you say that?"

"I don't know . . . it's stupid really but I made a joke to Paul about Stephanie sitting on his lap and he shot the idea down and normally whereas Steph would laugh when I looked at her she actually looked hurt and made a quick exit back into her office."

"Hmmm I see."

"Are you kidding me? Your only response is 'hmm I see'? Don't you have anything else to say to it?"

"What do you want me to say Shawn? I kind of had a clue on Saturday that there was more to their feelings than just friendship."

"You think Paul likes her too?"

She laughed, "I can't believe you don't know that one of your best friends has feelings for his boss who happens to be one of your other best friends. I saw the way he looked at her on Saturday, I saw the way she looked at him, neither of them are admitting to their feelings because they don't think the other person feels the same way."

Shawn rubbed his temple, "why is it so complicated."

"You do know Stephanie and Paul right? Nothing about their past or their current lives is uncomplicated so what makes you think that them falling in love will be uncomplicated."

"I don't know. What do we do now though? Someone needs to get the truth out of them."

"Well I could do with some adult company so I could take Steph to lunch tomorrow and you could take Paul to lunch that way neither of them will have any chance of hearing what the other says so it will be in complete privacy."

"You're a genius Bec, that's why I love you. Thank you for this and thank you for tomorrow. I'll see you when I get home, love you."

Shawn hung up the phone before setting it on the desk and ripping open his sandwich, the thought of his two best friends being in love made him happy as he knew how much they both deserved it.

Back in Stephanie's office Paul was just finishing off his sandwich when he realised that Stephanie didn't have her coffee so he picked it up and walked it into her office for her.

As he walked through her office door Paul noticed Stephanie's sandwich remained untouched on her desk, "what's on your mind?"

Her head snapped up to look at him, "huh?"

"Well anybody can tell something is on your mind, you've not even touched your lunch."

"It's nothing."

Paul sat down in the chair in front of her desk placing the coffee cup down, "it's something. You can talk to me you know, anything you say will remain confidential, I won't tell a soul."

Stephanie sighed heavily, "I suppose telling somebody might make me feel better. On Saturday Luke followed me home from your party, he never got close enough to talk to me or anything but he followed right behind me in his car. I know I couldn't actually see who was driving but it had to be him, there was no other option for why the person followed me right from your house to mine only driving off when I looked at the car."

"I'm sorry, I thought the cops would have forced him to move further away than the end of the road."

"You knew he was around?"

"Uh yeah, he kind of knocked the door trying to get in to talk to you but I refused to let him in. Please don't be mad that I didn't tell you, you were so relaxed and having so much fun I didn't want to ruin it."

She nodded solemnly, "it's okay, I'm not mad."

"There's something else on your mind isn't there?"

"Yeah. I moved back in with my parents when Luke reappeared again but yesterday my Mom was asking questions about why we're still there and I kind of feel like I have to move out this weekend."

"But you don't want to move out because you're scared witless that Luke will somehow get in?"

She knew she was completely overreacting but she couldn't help it, she was genuinely scared witless, "that's pretty much it yeah. Pathetic isn't it?"

He shook his head, "of course not, no fears are ever pathetic."

"Don't get me wrong I would love to be back in my own house again but it's just that first night that I know I won't get any sleep, any little noise will have me completely on edge."

Paul silently thought things over for a minute before he had an idea, "I was going to suggest a play date on Saturday for Alex and Lucy, well more so for us to have some adult company and I could play with Alex and you could look after Lucy. Anyway, we could still do the play date but if you have a crib or I could borrow one from somebody I could stay the night. That way if Luke was to try anything I would be there to protect you and Alex."

She looked at him like he was crazy, "you're kidding right? You've got to be nuts to suggest that."

He shrugged, "if you think it is such a terrible idea you only had to say that, there was no need to call me crazy." He then pouted for effect.

Stephanie couldn't help but laugh at him, "you know that is not what I meant. What I meant is that you would be putting yourself out so far for me, there is no way I could ask that of you."

"I don't know, you would actually be doing me a favour because I would get a night away from my parents nagging."

She laughed, "so _that_ is the real reason you want to do it huh?"

He put his hands up in defence, "guilty as charged. You wouldn't believe how much my parents nag me about everything, including my love life."

She groaned, "tell me about it. My Mom really is becoming President of the Nagging Society."

"She's probably having to fight my Mom for that role. Seriously though, I wouldn't offer if I didn't mean it. If you really think it would be happy then I'd be happy to stay with you Saturday night so you can go home and hopefully feel safe. I just need a couple of days notice in case you've not got a crib so I can arrange to borrow one."

"Thank you Paul, I really appreciate it. Give me time to think it over and I will get back to you."

Paul smiled as he stood up, "Not a problem. I'd better get back to work now though but please eat your lunch."

Stephanie rolled her eyes, "yes Dad, whatever you say."

She mock saluted him as he left the room with a smile on his face and a little chuckle.


	23. Chapter 23

The rest of Monday passed without incident much to Stephanie's pleasure. Since everything that had happened with Luke in the past she had never fully regained her emotional strength so after the conversation with her Mom on Sunday and then the dagger she had felt to her heart hearing Paul completely blow off any sort of contact between them that wasn't just friendship she felt emotionally drained so she didn't have the strength to deal with any drama.

When she got home she collapsed onto the couch feeling almost drained and needing a rest but she didn't get one as Alex was quickly climbing on top of her, "Mommy!"

She lifted her head and smiled at the little boy, "did you miss me?"

The little boy nodded his head cuddling close to her, "lots Mommy."

Carefully she sat up pulling him into her lap, "I have news. How would you feel about going home on Saturday?"

"Really?"

She nodded, "yes. Mommy's friend Paul said he'd help get us settled back in on Saturday."

Linda had walked in on the tail end of the conversation, "you're going home?"

Stephanie looked up at her Mom, "yeah, I figured it was about time we went home."

"It's not anything I said yesterday is it?"

Stephanie hated having to lie to her Mom again, "of course not Mom. We will be out of your hair on Saturday. Come on Alex, let's get you bathed and ready for bed."

She scooped the little boy up in her arms and headed upstairs.

The next day Stephanie's morning was taken up completely by meetings so she had no time to think or worry. By the time her last meeting of the morning was over she was ready for some comfort food.

She stretched out her back as she got up from her chair and grabbed her jacket before heading out the door, "Paul, I'm going to get some chocolate for lunch so I'll be back in five."

Paul looked up from his work, "do you want company?"

She smiled gratefully, "I would love that."

"Great, give me a minute to save this and then I am all yours."

He saved the work and pushed his chair back about to get up when he noticed Rebecca walking through the door, "Rebecca, what are you doing here? Haven't I told you not to come to my work as Shawn might catch us?"

Rebecca laughed at him, "sorry baby but I just couldn't stay away."

"Well I knew that already. You do know Shawn is two floors down right?"

"Yes Paul I did but I am not here for him, I'm here with lunch for Stephanie."

"What about me?"

Stephanie shrugged, "what about you? You can go and have lunch with Shawn if you want?"

Rebecca was in agreement with that, "yes, go away and let us girls have a good gossip."

He stood up and grabbed his jacket, "I know where I'm not wanted. I'll be back in an hour. Bec, make sure she eats today please."

With that Paul left the office leaving the girls alone, "did you bring chocolate?"

Rebecca nodded, "you bet I did."

The two of them went back through into Stephanie's office and took a seat, "so what are you doing here Bec?"

"I needed some adult company, with Cameron and Shawn sometimes I feel like I have two kids and I just need some adult conversation and some gossip."

Stephanie laughed at her, "sorry but I don't have any gossip."

"In that case I guess I'll just have to grill you about Paul."

"On one condition."

"Name it."

"Give me chocolate."

Rebecca laughed and tipped out the contents of her bag dividing up the drinks, sandwiches and chocolate, "so why did he tell me to make sure you ate?"

Stephanie ripped open her sandwich and took a big bite, "I didn't eat my lunch yesterday, I didn't fancy it."

Rebecca frowned shaking her head, "you should never skip a meal. Why did you not feel like eating?"

"It was nothing."

"Nothing? It was something. You can be honest with me Steph."

Stephanie ignored her and focussed on eating her sandwich all the while Rebecca was staring at her eating her own sandwich trying to break her.

Before long she couldn't take the staring any more, "okay okay, just quit looking at me like that."

Rebecca laughed softly, "sorry but I had to break you somehow. I'm going out on a limb and saying it has something to do with a certain blonde we just sent to lunch."

Stephanie scowled, "why do you think that?"

"Women's intuition."

"You talk out of your ass sometimes."

"Okay fine, you really want to know? I've seen the way you look at him and Shawn told me about what happened yesterday."

"What do you mean 'what happened yesterday'? Nothing happened yesterday."

"Shawn said when he made a joke about you sitting on Paul's lap and he shot it down you looked hurt."

Stephanie opened her mouth to reply but quickly shut it setting the half-eaten sandwich on the desk, "truthfully?"

Rebecca nodded her head, "of course truthfully. Whatever you say stays between the two of us."

Feeling tears well up at the thought of Paul and telling the truth, "I think I'm falling for him Bec."

Stephanie quickly wiped at the tears that fell down her cheeks, it was a relief to finally speak about her feelings but she felt an immense amount of pain also at having fallen for somebody.

Rebecca quickly got up from her chair and walked around the desk pulling Stephanie into her arms, "shhh, it's okay."

She held her for a couple of minutes as she cried before Stephanie finally pulled back, "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry Steph, it's better for it to be out than hold it in. Is that the first time you've admitted that?"

Stephanie nodded slowly, "I've tried denying it Bec but I can't, it hurts so much."

"Why does it hurt so much?"

"The thought of putting myself out there again with another man and potentially getting hurt again both emotionally and physically ending up back in hospital, the thought of Alex getting hurt but mostly because he doesn't feel the same."

"He doesn't? You've spoken to him about this?"

"Well . . . ."

"So you've not?"

Stephanie sighed heavily, "no, it's too awkward to have that conversation with him, especially being his boss."

"Well do you want my opinion?"

She chewed her lip nervously, as good a friend as Rebecca was she wasn't sure whether she was ready to have her hopes of the two of them being a couple dashed completely, "go on."

"I will not say what I think Paul feels as only he knows how he feels but you won't know until you talk to him about that. Moving past both of your feelings though I can tell you with one hundred percent certainty, Paul will in no way physically hurt you as his Mom would kill him if he did."

Stephanie couldn't help but laugh, "she did seem kind of feisty didn't she?"

"Oh she is, believe me she is. Patricia is the sweetest person you could ever hope to meet but she has certainly brought Paul up well and if he hit you she would most probably cut off his hands."

"Well he wouldn't have to lift a finger to hurt Alex."

"He wouldn't hurt Alex, physically or emotionally. Cameron adores Paul and Paul adores him too, he goes out of his way to make Cam happy and even if you got with Paul and then you broke up if Alex really adored Paul then Paul would keep up the contact."

"You really think so?"

"Trust me I know so, he adores kids and having Lucy he has an even deeper understanding of how children become attached to adults. Promise me you'll talk to him about everything?"

Stephanie sighed heavily, "I will think about it. Let's just finish eating before somebody overhears us."

Rebecca picked up her sandwich again and started to eat it, she hoped Shawn was having some luck with Paul finding out for certain how he felt because seeing Stephanie so vulnerable broke her heart.


	24. Chapter 24

Paul was less than impressed with Rebecca for turning up at work to have lunch with Stephanie as it meant he wouldn't get some quiet one on one time with her today. He was starting to cherish the time they had together, even if it was just lunch because in his head he knew they'd never be a couple so it was the closest thing he'd get to dating her.

He was practically sulking as he walked around the offices to get to where Shawn was now working getting him a few funny looks from the people he passed. By the time he reached Shawn's new office he was ready to get out of there, "Shawn, do you want to go out to grab some lunch with me?"

Shawn looked up from his work and raised his eyebrow at Paul's weird demeanour, "sure dude, Steph coming?"

"No, your wife turned up with lunch for her and kicked me out."

Suddenly it all made sense to Shawn, "she does have impeccable timing. So what shall we get for lunch?"

Paul shrugged, he wasn't really fussed about what he ate just as long as it was something to fill his stomach as he was starving.

Shawn grabbed his jacket before pushing Paul towards the door, "lets get your grumpy ass out of here."

The two men walked silently out of the building, "sandwich or some form of take-out?"

Paul still didn't care, "sandwich will do."

Shawn shook his head, "what the hell is your problem? It's like someone pissed in your cheerios this morning."

"It's nothing."

"It's something. As your best friend I expect the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth."

"We're not in court Shawn, you can't make me tell you anything."

Shawn raised his eyebrow, "do you really want to make a bet on that? I have ways and means of getting information out of you and I have a secret weapon, she's called Patricia."

Paul groaned, "please not my Mother, I will do anything if you just leave her out of it."

"That's what I thought you'd say. So what's on your mind? You can't be this upset over Rebecca turning up surely."

"It's kind of Rebecca but kind of not her."

"I'm too hungry to try and comprehend this madness. Once we get food you can explain it to me because right now you sound like a nut case."

Paul rolled his eyes, "you asked Shawn."

The two walked in silence the rest of the way to the sandwich shop ordering their food before taking a seat at one of the tables they had in there.

Once they had their sandwiches Shawn took a big bite out of his, "so now I have food explain it to me."

Paul sighed and messed with his sandwich not really sure where to begin, "Stephanie and I were about to go out for lunch when Rebecca turned up."

"So? I'm sure the two of you can go for lunch some other day."

"It's not really about that Shawn."

Shawn rubbed his temple, "then what is it about Paul? Clearly whatever it is it's bothering you."

"I can't tell you, you'll hate me."

"Hate you? Don't talk such rubbish. You're one of my best friends Paul, no matter what you say I could never hate you . . . unless you were to hit Stephanie or Rebecca and **then** I would hate you. Have you hit Stephanie?"

"No! God no Shawn, you know I would never do that."

"Then quit acting like a girl and spit it out."

Silence fell over the pair of them as Paul took a bite out of his sandwich slowly munching on it prolonging the wait for Shawn.

"Oh for fucks sake Paul, just spit it out."

Paul couldn't help but laugh at Shawn's little outburst, "impatient are we?"

Shawn crossed his arms, "you know damn well I am, I don't do waiting well."

"I know, that's why I'm making you wait now, that and I don't know how to put it into words."

"Can you hurry up please, I only have an hour lunch and you've already taken up half of that with your stalling."

Paul sighed heavily, "I think I'm falling for her. Scratch that, there's no think about it, I have fallen for her."

Shawn knew who he meant but he needed to hear him say it, "falling for who?"

Paul rolled his eyes, "Becca naturally."

"Don't play games Paul, that was a serious question."

"Fine, you want to hear me say her name so here it is. I have fallen for Stephanie."

"Very nice."

"Very nice?" Paul looked at Shawn like he had three heads not believe those words just came out of his mouth, "are you high or something?"

"Maybe? I don't know what they put in my sandwich. Seriously though Paul, what do you want/expect me to say?"

"I don't know, maybe something like 'are you stupid?' or 'have you completely lost your mind?' or you know something expressing your disbelief at the stupidity of it."

"But I don't think you're being stupid and to be honest I'm not all that surprised, the two of you are very similar."

Paul couldn't believe the words coming out of Shawn's mouth, it was almost like he already knew how he felt about Stephanie, "what do I do Shawn?"

"Ask her out on a date."

Paul laughed sarcastically, "sure man, are you willing to pay my hospital bills or help me find a new job?"

Shawn screwed up the packaging of his sandwich and sat back in his chair with his arms crossed, "you won't need the hospital or to find a new job, Stephanie isn't that cruel."

"Come on Shawn, do you seriously think if I were to ask her out on a date and she were to say no then things would be okay between us ever again?"

"For starters you don't know that she would say no."

"Maybe not but I know she won't say yes. Why would she say yes? Look at the baggage I'm carrying."

"Look at the baggage **she's **carrying. Paul you're both adults, you're both single parents, you're both utterly miserable alone and whenever you're together you're both happy, you'd be stupid not to ask her out."

"I'm not sure I can Shawn, I don't know if I can put myself out there again."

As much as Shawn wanted to slap Paul and tell him to stop being so ridiculous he had seen first hand how broken he was after Sarah had left, "I'm not saying ask her to marry you, just ask her out on a date."

"Maybe after the weekend."

"What's happening at the weekend?"

"I'm helping her move back home Saturday and I'm staying overnight so that if Luke turns up or tries anything somebody is there to protect her and Alex, well that's if she wants me to as she hasn't yet decided."

Shawn couldn't help the smile that crossed his lips hearing Paul say that, "ever the gentleman."

"Well she is pretty scared about being there alone so I thought it was for the best. We'd better get back to work before we get fired."

Shawn laughed, "she'd never fire us but you're right. Come on and let's go."

The two of them got up and threw their trash out and were about to walk out the door when Paul remembered what Stephanie had said, "Shawn, do you know what Steph's favourite chocolate is?"

"Umm yeah, it's some chocolate caramel crap that is ridiculously sweet, why?"

"Steph said she was craving chocolate so I thought I'd pick some up for her before we go back."

Shawn waved his hand dismissively, "if you can work out which one it is then I will wait outside."

"Yeah I know which one it is. I'll be two minutes." He then walked up to the counter grabbing a couple of bars to take back to the office with him.

Shawn walked out of the door shaking his head and muttering, "whipped, he's already whipped."


	25. Chapter 25

Paul was nervous as he walked with Shawn back to the offices as he really didn't want Shawn spilling the beans on how he felt to anybody, especially Stephanie, "you're not going to tell anybody what we discussed at lunch are you?"

Shawn laughed at him, "you sure can be a girl sometimes with your panicking. Who do you think I'm going to tell?"

Paul shrugged, "Stephanie? I don't know Shawn, I just don't want things to be awkward."

Shawn shook his head at his friend, "trust me, I won't tell Stephanie how you feel as that is your job and I trust that you will do it."

Paul made a face as he pushed open the big door to the reception area. He smiled and waved briefly at Nikki who was at reception tied up on the phone a they made their way to the elevator.

Just as they passed reception Nikki put the phone down, "Paul, hang on a sec please."

He spun around on his heel, "what can I help you with?"

She held out a small white envelope, "this was dropped off for Steph not long after you guys left for lunch and I've been so caught up down here I've not had chance to run it up. Do you think you could possibly take it up with you please?"

He scratched his chin thoughtfully, "hmmm, I'm not sure about that Nikki, I mean it will mean I'll have to go completely out of my way."

She shook her head at him scowling playfully, "pretty please with a cherry on top?"

"Well as you put it so nicely I think I can do that for you."

He took the letter from her outstretched hand before running to catch up with Shawn to go back to work.

Once the two men were in the elevator Paul took a look at the front of the envelope and his brow creased thoughtfully.

"What's wrong Paul?"

"It's nothing, I think. Do you find it funny that the front of this envelope is handwritten and it was hand delivered rather than being sent through the post? All the mail I open tends to be labels and very rarely is any of it hand delivered."

"That is odd but it isn't unheard of for somebody to write out the envelope and hand deliver it if they are in a rush to return something. I'd be careful with it though, make sure you open it before she sees it incase it is something sinister."

With that the elevator stopped and Shawn got off as they had reached his floor, "call me if there's any problems, I'm only a short elevator ride away."

Paul nodded still deep in thought about the letter as the doors closed and the elevator continued its ascent to his floor. As he reached his floor Paul stuffed the letter into his pocket making his way back to the office.

When he reached the office he heard Stephanie and Rebecca laughing and shook his head wondering if he dared enter. Reluctantly he stepped into the outer office before he went and knocked gently on her office door.

"Come in."

Paul stuck his head in the door, "am I allowed to go back to work now or do I have to leave again?"

Stephanie laughed at him, "I think you can go back to work now."

Rebecca stood up, "I should get going as I'll have to pick Cam up shortly. Did you have fun with Shawn Paul?"

The mention of Shawn reminded him of the chocolate he had bought for her, "yes I did but that reminds me."

He pushed the door open further and stepped inside reaching into his pocked and pulling out a few chocolate bars before putting them on her desk, "you said you wanted chocolate so here's some chocolate for you. I hope that's the right one."

Stephanie's eyes widened as she looked at the chocolate in front of her before she looked up at Paul's face, "thank you it's my favourite, that's so sweet of you to think of me."

He shrugged, "it was nothing."

With that he turned and walked back out of the office to go back to his work.

As soon as Paul had left Rebecca raised her eyebrow, "he's bringing you chocolate now? And you're questioning his feelings?"

Stephanie just rolled her eyes, "shut up."

Rebecca held her hands up in defence, "I'm out of here. Call me if you need anything."

Stephanie smiled and stood up to hug Rebecca, "thank you for today, I needed it."

"Not a problem, adult company is always a pleasure."

Rebecca left the office waving to Paul on her way out.

Once Rebecca had left Stephanie sat back at her desk and smiled at the chocolate bars on her desk, it really was so very thoughtful of him. Moving the chocolate to the side she got back to work.

Paul had forgotten all about the letter in his pocket as he'd removed his jacket when he arrived back at the office and it was now hanging on the back of his chair. It was only when he turned around to get his phone out of his inside pocket that he remembered the letter in the outside pocket.

Removing his phone from the inside pocket and placing it on the desk he then got the letter out of the other pocket and placed it in front of him unsure whether to open it or not as it looked personal.

After staring at the letter for a good five minutes he decided that it would be in Stephanie's best interest if he opened the letter himself in case Luke had been stupid enough to hand deliver something for her but he doubted it.

Slowly and carefully he opened the envelope before pulling the sheet of paper out.

_Dear Stephanie,_

_I know you've got a new boyfriend now but that doesn't mean I am giving up on you. Your delightful new boyfriend is stopping me from contacting you for whatever reason, you really need to rein him in because I'm not going to hurt you, I never have._

_I tried talking to you on Saturday but he wouldn't let me in, he said he'd give you the message but as you've not called I really don't think he did. I have been left with no option but to write you this letter as I know if I rang Shawn would stop me from talking to you because he's jealous of what we have._

_Please can we meet up and discuss things? I really want the two of us to get back together and move on with our lives together like we should and one day we can get married like you always wanted. _

_My number has not changed so please call me._

_Love,_

_Luke_

Paul stared at the letter reading and re-reading it not believing the words that were written in front of him, was this guy completely crazy?

Briefly taking his gaze away from the letter he picked up his phone and flipped through his contacts searching for Shawn's name so he could call him.

After a few rings Shawn picked up, "aww bless you, you love me so much you just can't stay away huh?"

"Not now Shawn, we have a problem and it is a large one. You need to come up here right now."

Shawn did not like the sound of that at all, "I will be there in two minutes."

He hung up his phone and quickly made his way out of his office.

Within a matter of minutes Shawn was in Paul's office, "what happened?"

Paul held the letter out to him, "I suggest you take a look at this."

Almost reluctantly Shawn took the letter from Paul's grasp and started to read it.

After reading the letter line by line he shook his head, "has she seen this?"

"Do you think I'm crazy? Of course she hasn't but we **have** to tell her Shawn, we can't hide this from her because by the tone of this letter he's only going to try even harder to contact her."

"Yeah but . . ."

"But what Shawn? You can't actually tell me that you want me to throw it in the bin and not tell her what's going on."

"Well no but is it really smart to actually tell her?"

"Is it really smart not to? If we don't tell her we could be putting her and Alex in danger."

Shawn sighed heavily, "fine fine, we'll tell her. Let's go."

Before the men had chance to go into Stephanie's office she came walking out, "oh Shawn, it's just you. I heard voices and wondered what was going on."

Stephanie looked between the two of them, the look on their faces made her feel uneasy, "what's going on? Why do you look like you're about to tell me some really bad news?"

"It's not bad news as such, more details on something you already know."

She sighed heavily knowing exactly where this is going, "Luke? What has he done now?"

Shawn reluctantly held out the letter towards her, "this was dropped off whilst me and Paul were at lunch but Nikki didn't have chance to bring it up herself so she gave it to Paul when we came back."

She took the letter from Paul and quickly scanned it, "so he does think Paul and I are a couple then."

Paul nodded, "that's what it seems like from the letter."

Once she had finished reading the letter she handed it back to Shawn, "he's a fucking psycho. I wouldn't get back with him if my life depended on it."

Her eyes drifted to Paul who just stood there silently watching her, "I'm sorry."

He shook his head, "don't be sorry, you've got nothing to be sorry about. Are you sure you still want to move back home on Saturday?"

Stephanie nodded her head, "only if your offer still stands to stay over Saturday night. I can't let Luke rule my life, I can't let him ruin Alex's and I have to get things back to normal for him."

Shawn interjected, "even if he seems to be stepping up his campaign to get you back?"

She glared at Shawn, "he's not, he's just trying to scare me into getting back in contact with him. So will you Paul?"

Paul nodded his head, "of course I will."

She smiled softly, "thank you. Now enough worrying about Puke you both need to get back to work."

Her changing of Luke's name didn't go unnoticed by the two men but they stood silently as she turned around and walked back into her office and shut the door.

As soon as Stephanie was safely back into her office Shawn turned to Paul, "she's in denial and I'm worried."

Paul nodded his head, "that makes two of us. I'll watch her though and any more problems I'll call you. I think that is all we can do for now though sadly."

Shawn nodded his head, "yeah you're probably right about that. Thank you though." Reluctantly he then went back to work.

Meanwhile Stephanie was sat in her office chair with her hands clutched in her lap trying to stop them shaking, "he can't hurt me, he won't hurt me."


	26. Chapter 26

Stephanie was sat staring at her computer screen willing her brain to stop thinking about Luke and focus on the words in front of her but it just wasn't happening. Every time the phone rang or every time somebody walked into the office she immediately thought it was Luke and she would jump and lose focus on her work resulting in nothing getting done.

She sighed as she looked at the clock for the billionth time that afternoon, the little digits on her computer screen read a little after 4 which meant she still had an hour to go at work but she just wasn't getting anywhere. Deciding to just cut her losses here and hopefully work from home after Alex had gone to bed she started to pack her things away.

Once she had everything that she was taking home in her bag and the computer turned off she grabbed her jacket and headed for the door.

Paul lifted his head as he heard her walking out of her office, "wha . . . you're leaving?"

She sighed softly, "yeah, I'm not getting much work done here so I figured I'd just go home and then once Alex is in bed tonight I'll do the work then."

"Okay. If anybody calls I'll tell them you're otherwise engaged for the rest of the day and I will pass the message on and you will call them back or do whatever you need to do tomorrow. If I say that then they're not to know you're not here."

"You're sweet, you know that right?"

He laughed softly, "I'm not really, it's just for your safety."

"Well whatever the reason you're doing it thank you. I will see you in the morning, goodnight Paul."

He smiled softly, "good night Steph, take care on your way home."

She smiled softly and waved goodbye before she left the office, she put on a brave front for him but inside her stomach was tied in knots at the prospect of heading home in case Luke was sat outside waiting for her.

Paul watched Stephanie leave concerned about her leaving alone after Luke's letter but he didn't have long to dwell on it as the phone rang almost immediately.

Stephanie was relieved when she pulled into her parents drive after a safe and uneventful drive which didn't involve her being followed.

As she pushed open the front door she was immediately attacked by her son, "Mommy's home!"

She laughed and scooped the little boy up dropping her bag at the side and kicking the door shut behind her, "she sure is."

Linda was stood there watching her daughter intently, "it's not even five o'clock, is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine Mom, I just couldn't concentrate so decided to come home early and spend some time with Alex and then work later when he's gone to bed."

Linda looked at her daughter sceptically, "are you lying to me?"

"No Mom, I'm not lying."

With that Stephanie kicked off her shoes and put Alex back on the floor, "to the playroom we go."

Linda couldn't help but smile as she watched the little boy run off screaming and her daughter following her also smiling but as her Mother it was hard for her to not notice that the smile didn't quite reach her eyes, something was going on but she just didn't know what it was.

Back in the office and Paul was just closing everything down when Shawn walked in, "Steph ready to go?"

"She's already gone."

Shawn's eyes widened, "are you nuts? You let her leave alone?"

"She left at 4 Shawn, I could hardly accompany her. She didn't look herself anyway so hopefully some time with Alex will do her good."

Shawn wasn't listening to him as he was calling Stephanie to see if she got home safely.

Stephanie was happy sat on the floor playing cars with Alex and with her phone in her bag by the front door she didn't hear it ring and she really didn't care either.

As Shawn stood there waiting for her to pick up he started tapping his foot as it kept ringing before it went to message bank, "fuck, she's not answering."

Ending that call Shawn dialled her parents home number hoping somebody there would answer.

Linda was working on dinner when she heard the phone ringing so wiping her hands on her apron she picked it up to answer it, "hello, McMahon residence. How may I help you?"

Shawn sighed with relief, "Linda it's Shawn, is Steph there?"

"Shawn, it's so good to hear from you. Steph is here though, she's in the play room with Alex. Do you want me to get her for you?"

"No it's okay thanks, I just wanted to make sure she got home okay."

She was confused, why would he want to make sure she got home okay? "What's going on Shawn? Why are you checking up on her to make sure she got home okay? I didn't think you worked as her PA anymore."

His eyes widened when he realised she was getting suspicious, "nothing is wrong, I just didn't know where she was. I came up to see her and her new PA was gone, she was gone and she wasn't answering her cell so I wanted to make sure everything was okay."

She didn't quite believe his story but she didn't want to pry, "okay then. Well Stephanie got home safely about half an hour ago now. Would you like me to tell her you were looking for her and called?"

"No no, that's okay Linda but thank you. It was good talking to you."

"You too Shawn, take care."

When Shawn hung up Paul shook his head, "you so nearly dropped Steph in it then. You've got to be careful Shawn because she doesn't want her parents to know."

"Well if she'd answer her damn phone I wouldn't have to check up on her."

"Whatever, she's just trying to spend time with her son. That isn't a crime is it?"

"No but with Luke hanging around like a bad smell I am a little on edge."

"I'm on edge too and I don't even know the guy, I just know we need to protect Stephanie but not too much so she pushes us away because we're smothering her, that's why I let her walk to her car alone."

Shawn made a face at Paul, he talked so much sense that it was actually scary how well he seemed to know Stephanie in such a short period of time, "well you know how you could protect her without smothering her."

Paul raised his eyebrow, "I do? I think you've lost me there."

"Ask her out. If you're dating her then you have an excuse to be around her and to protect her without her feeling smothered."

Paul was starting to regret telling Shawn how he felt if he was going to use it against him like this, "not happening Shawn so we'll just have to protect her without me attempting to date her just to make you happy because you know she'll be protected."

"It's not like that Paul."

"Is it not? You could have fooled me."

"Okay maybe it's a little like that but I only say it because I know you like her and I know the two of you together would be a perfect couple and you'd be so happy."

"Yeah well if anything is going to happen between us it will happen in our time and not yours so just back off. Goodnight Shawn."

With that Paul grabbed his jacket from the back of his chair and walked off leaving Shawn stood there alone in an empty office wondering why exactly Paul was so sensitive.


	27. Chapter 27

When Shawn got home from work he collapsed onto the couch in a half sulk, he wanted Paul and Stephanie to be together already.

Rebecca was shocked but amused by her husbands return home, she could see he was stressed but when he was stressed he always acted like such a child, "what's wrong with you?"

"Stephanie and Paul need to get together already." He punctuated his statement with a pout.

She laughed at him, "You spoke to Paul then?"

"Yes and he admitted that he had fallen for her but he won't do anything about it, he doesn't want to lose the job so he is too scared to actually ask her out but I want them to be together now as Luke seems to be stepping up his campaign to win her back and she's moving home at the weekend and I'm scared Luke will do something when she's home alone even though Paul is staying with her for the first night."

"Whoa whoa whoa Shawn, slow down, breathe and explain all of that to me slowly before Cam gets home."

"The important part is Luke sent Steph a hand written letter today saying stuff about Paul being her new boyfriend and how he was keeping him from her and how I was jealous of the two of them together and would stop him contacting her if he rang the office blah blah blah."

"And the part about her moving home?"

"I don't know the background, all I know is that Paul offered to help her move back home and stay with her the first night to protect her and Alex in case he tried anything and even after the letter she's still planning to move home and she's asked Paul to stay that first night."

Rebecca shook her head, "I know Steph is stubborn but she's putting herself in danger."

"I know that, you know that but she refuses to acknowledge that as she has a serious case of denial. What do we do Bec?"

She shrugged really not sure what they did as she knew how hard headed Stephanie was and when she got an idea in her head nothing was going to change her mind, "what did Paul say?"

"He's as hard headed as she is. I tried getting him to ask her out so he could hang out with her a lot but he said no. Remind me why I'm friends with them both again."

"Because you can be as hard headed as both of them."

"Hey! That is no fair as it is all lies."

"It really isn't Shawn. We need to do **something**to show Stephanie we are there for her and will support her through anything and everything."

He frowned, "I know that, I just don't know what."

"We could always just use the weekend to metaphorically beat her over the head with the need to keep herself protected for Alex's sake and maybe try and wear her and Paul down enough that they will actually admit their feelings for each other to each other."

"I like that idea a lot. I knew there was a reason I married you."

"Charming, I love you too Shawn."

"You know I didn't mean it like that, I do love you, very very much."

Shawn sat up and pulled Rebecca close to him and kissed her softly but they were interrupted by the doorbell, "Cam's home."

She pulled away from Shawn to go and let their son in.

Paul arrived home a lot earlier than normal as he had left pretty much dead on five o'clock so when he opened the front door he wasn't surprised to hear talking coming from the kitchen.

Making his way to the kitchen he pushed the door open and smiled softly seeing his Mom sat trying to feed Lucy a bit of puréed vegetables.

Shrugging off his jacket and placing it over the back of a chair he unhooked the straps on Lucy's high chair and picked her up holding her close to him, "I missed you baby girl."

"Paul I was trying to feed her."

"Yeah yeah, whatever."

"Paul!"

He snapped out of his daze, "what?"

Patricia frowned at her son, "are you okay? You seem a little off."

"It's nothing."

"Mmhmm. Well if that's the case do you mind putting her back in her high chair so I can finish feeding her please?"

"No it's okay, I'll sit her on my lap and finish feeding her myself."

With that he sat down placing Lucy in his lap but leaning against his one arm and he grabbed the bowl and spoon from his Mom and started to feed her.

She watched as he slowly fed Lucy her dinner one spoonful at a time until it was all gone and then he gently wiped her face cleaning her up, something about his demeanour was different and it scared her.

"Is Sarah back in the picture?"

"What? No, no way."

Patricia was confused, "then why on earth are you acting like this? You're so possessive of Lucy and it's like you're committing every inch of her body to your memory like you're about to lose her."

He sighed heavily, "I don't want to get into it but it's not really about me or Lucy."

She nodded knowingly, "it's about Stephanie and Alex?"

He just nodded getting up from his chair with Lucy in his arms, "I'll do the dishes when I've bathed and put her to bed."

With that he grabbed his jacket from the back of the chair and made his way towards the stairs avoiding any potential questions.

Stephanie had enjoyed spending some time with Alex just relaxing and playing with him, he as at such a precious age that she enjoyed every moment she got to spend with him and it was good that he helped her forget all of her problems.

Alex was just finishing off the dinner Linda had made for him, "ice cream?"

Linda looked at her daughter who was sat watching him eat, "Steph?"

Stephanie shook her head, "huh?"

"Alex, he wants ice cream."

"Sure."

Linda silently got Alex a bowl of ice cream more convinced than ever that something was wrong with Stephanie.

Stephanie got up and excused herself from the table before she headed for the foyer to grab her bag and go upstairs for a few minutes alone.

She sat down on the seat at her bedroom window that overlooked the back yard, she couldn't deny that ever since the letter earlier Luke was taking up most of her thoughts any time she stopped and did nothing.

She smiled softly to herself when she saw Alex who appeared to be dragging his Granddad about behind him to play with him in the garden before bed.

Reaching into her bag she pulled out her cell phone and looked at the display which is when she noticed that she had a missed call from Shawn but she wasn't interested in finding out what he wanted, there was somebody else she wanted to talk to right now.

Paul had carried Lucy into her nursery so he could get her towel. Dropping his jacket on the rocking chair he picked his cell phone out of the pocket and put it in the pocket of his trousers so he didn't accidentally sit on it when he went to relax Lucy before bed. Once he had the towel he headed for the bathroom.

After juggling Lucy as he ran the bath and made sure it was the right temperature for her he finally placed her in the little chair he had to keep her safe in the bath so she could splash about a little.

He was enjoying watching Lucy having fun in the bath but he had to actually wash her so he started to gently pour the water over her body before washing her. Once he was satisfied she was clean he sat back on his heels and let her splash some more.

He was just about to lift Lucy out of the bath when he felt his phone vibrate against his leg so he quickly wiped his hands before he pulled the phone from his pocket and flipped it open not taking his eyes off Lucy, "Hello?"

"Paul?"

He smiled softly, "hey Steph, I wasn't expecting to hear from you tonight."

"I'm sorry for calling, I'll let you go."

"No no! Steph you don't have to go, I was just surprised that's all. What's up?"

Stephanie wasn't going to tell him the truth so she tried to bluff her way through it, "I just wanted to go over details for Saturday."

"Okay cool. Well I was thinking that I'd leave Lucy with my Mom for the morning so I could help take your stuff from your parents back to your house and then once it was all there I could drop home and pick Lucy up and then we could head back over to your house."

She was distracted by the view out of the window of her Dad playing football with her son so didn't really listen to a word he said, "uh huh."

Paul noticed the distracted response so decided to have fun, "after that then we will leave the kids home alone and we will go out for a night of partying."

"Sounds good . . . wait, you just said we'd go out partying."

"Yes I did. I didn't think you were listening so I made some stuff up to see for certain."

"Sorry, I was just watching Alex playing with my Dad in the back garden."

"It's okay, don't worry about it."

Just then Lucy splashed the water trying to get attention from her Daddy.

Stephanie heard the splashing and was confused, "having a splashing time are we?"

He laughed, "I'm not but apparently Lucy is, she loves her bath but I should get her out now."

"Oh okay, I will let you go then."

He heard the sadness in her voice so decided to juggle the phone and Lucy, "you don't have to go, as long as you don't mind me putting you on speaker that is."

"No I don't mind at all."

"Okay good."

With that Paul put his cell phone on speaker before placing it down on the lid of the toilet before reaching for the towel and lifting Lucy out of the bath, "so do you have a crib I can borrow for Lucy for Saturday night."

"Yes I do, I still have Alex's nursery set up so I'll give it a quick clean when I get home Saturday and she can sleep there and then you can have the guest room across from her."

"That sounds great, thank you."

He started to dry Lucy before bundling her up in the towel to take her back to the nursery to dress her ready for bed as silence enveloped his conversation with Stephanie as she drifted off again.

Once he had picked up his phone he carried that and Lucy back to the nursery before placing Lucy on the changing table and his phone by her head, "be honest with me here Steph, is something on your mind?"

"I'm scared Paul, like really scared. I know if I told Shawn he would completely freak out and I just can't deal with that right now."

"What scares you?"

"Luke, I'm scared he will actually get close enough to talk to me face to face or he'll do something stupid to try and talk to me because he wants me back."

"I won't let him get close enough to you for that to happen."

"You can't protect me forever."

Paul frowned as he attempted to put Lucy's pyjamas on her, "okay maybe you have a point there but it doesn't mean I'm not going to try."

One simple question was going around and around in Stephanie's head, "why?" She knew what she wanted him to say and she hoped he did but then she didn't want him to at the same time.

He paused as he tried to find the right words to say, "I value your friendship. I think you're an amazing woman and I don't want anything to happen to you or Alex."

Stephanie's face fell, she didn't know why she had hoped he'd say he liked her, it was a silly thing to think as it would never happen, "I value your friendship too."

As Paul focussed on doing up the bottom of Lucy's pyjama's he failed to notice her grab hold of his phone and put it in her mouth.

Stephanie was about to let him go when she heard rustling on the speaker and then it sounded like someone was chewing on the phone which made her giggle which caught Paul's attention.

"Oh God Lucy, get off my phone." He proceeded to try and prise the phone from her grasp.

Once he had the phone free he wiped at it with his shirt sleeve, "yuck. Are you still there Steph?"

He should have known by the laughter he could hear that she was, "I'm here. You really need to buy your daughter a chew toy."

"Nah, I should just learn to keep my phone out of her reach."

"That would also work. I should let you go though as it sounds like you have your hands full. I will see you in work tomorrow so have fun with Lucy and give her a kiss from me and I look forward to seeing her on Saturday."

"Take care Steph, goodnight."

Paul flipped his phone shut before putting it far out of Lucy's reach and then lifting her up, "you are a very bad girl but Daddy loves you a lot."

He kissed Lucy's cheek before taking her over to the rocking chair and sitting down to rock her to sleep.

When Stephanie hung up the phone from Paul she had a small smile on her face, her day may have been terrible but just speaking to him made her feel so much better.


	28. Chapter 28

Paul made sure Lucy was sound asleep before he turned the baby monitor on and went downstairs to see if his parents could watch Lucy Saturday morning for him, he hoped they could.

When he walked into the kitchen the conversation between his parents immediately stopped, "don't let my presence disrupt you."

Paul Sr shook his head, "it wasn't anything important son. Is Lucy asleep?"

"Yeah she is."

Paul took a seat at the table next to his Father and played with his knife and fork as he tried to think of the right way to ask them to look after Lucy, he felt bad enough asking them to watch her during the week without adding Saturday on top.

Patricia noticed her son's behaviour and it was the classic sign of him having something to ask, "just spit it out Paul, ask whatever you want to ask and leave the cutlery alone please."

"Sorry." Paul then set the cutlery back on the table making sure it was straight and in the correct place, "this is kind of a big question to ask but will you watch Lucy for me Saturday morning please? I promised Steph I'd help her and Alex move back home and I don't want to have to worry about her."

"Of course we'll look after her Paul, you know we never say no when you ask us to look after her."

"I know but I feel bad asking you."

"Don't be stupid, you know we love doing it and anyway, this is all for a good cause."

"Well thank you all the same."

When Stephanie flipped her phone shut after talking to Paul she had a small smile on her face, he made her feel so happy and relaxed and he didn't even have to do anything special to make her feel that way.

She quickly changed out of her suit into a pair of jeans and a t-shirt before making her way back downstairs as she would have to bath Alex soon ready for bed.

As she walked out into the garden where Vince and Alex were playing she spotted her Mom sat on the patio to the side watching them so she made her way over and joined her.

Linda didn't realise that her daughter had rejoined them until she sat down beside her, she noticed the small smile on her face as she sat down which piqued her interest, "what's changed your mood so drastically?"

"Huh? Nothing."

Linda looked at her daughter sceptically, "really? So in the space of fifteen minutes you go from being an emotional wreck to smiling, albeit only slightly but smiling all the same and nothing has changed your mood? Liar."

Stephanie's eyes widened at the accusation, "I'm not lying . . . kind of."

"Stephanie I'm your Mother and I love and support you through anything but when you're lying to me it makes it very hard for me to do that."

"Okay fine, if you must know I spoke to Paul and his daughter was being all cute and adorable."

"Was it his daughter being adorable or was it him?"

"Moooooooom!"

"What? It's a legitimate question."

"Whatever, I'm still not answering that."

Linda shrugged, "maybe you'll answer this one then. Why was Shawn so desperate to find out where you were he rang the house but refused to talk to you."

"What do you mean?"

"Earlier when you were playing with Alex Shawn rang and he seemed pretty anxious to know where you were but when I said I'd tell you he called he didn't want me to. So now tell me nothing is going on."

Right then Stephanie wanted to kill Shawn, she told Paul she was coming home and she assumed Shawn would have spoken to him so she didn't get why he didn't believe her or trust she would get home okay, "it's probably just a work thing or Shawn being Shawn and being a drama queen about it all."

"Well I'm not inclined to believe you, I think you and him are keeping something secret. If you're in trouble at work please tell me, we can help."

"Work's fine, everything is growing and is becoming more profitable by the month."

"Then what is it? If you are putting Alex in harms way then I want to know."

She wasn't going to sit there and be lectured by her Mom so she stood up, "come on Alex, it's time for you to have a bath and get ready for bed."

Walking with a purpose she headed over to where he was playing with her Dad knowing he'd put up a fight about it.

Seeing the mood his daughter appeared to be in and knowing how Alex was he decided to jump in before an argument started, "your Mom's right Alex, you do need to go to bed. Don't worry though, we can come out and play again tomorrow."

Alex pouted but took Stephanie's hand and walked inside with her.

As soon as Stephanie and Alex had left Vince went and sat next to his wife, "what did you say?"

Linda looked shocked, "I didn't say anything."

He just raised his eyebrow which was enough to make Linda crack, "okay okay. Something is going on between Stephanie, Shawn and her new PA Paul."

"You mean an affair?"

"What? Vince are you crazy?"

He shrugged, "sorry, I thought that's what you meant as you weren't clear."

"No it's not what I meant, jeez. They, or at least Stephanie and Shawn, are keeping some sort of secret. Shawn is being incredibly overprotective, Stephanie is being very defensive about things and it's just setting off my Momdar."

"Your Momdar?"

She shook her head, "yes, my inbuilt motherly radar that tells me when something is going on with my children and right now it is blaring but I don't know over what or why."

"How do you think this Paul guy is implicated?"

"That's where it gets confusing as I'm not sure if he's involved in what Shawn and Stephanie are hiding from me or if Steph just fancies him."

"She could always be dating him and that's what she's hiding and Shawn is covering for them because you did say she seemed to like him and he is good friends with Shawn."

Linda shook her head, "no way, Shawn seemed genuinely worried that she hadn't gotten home okay and if he was covering for them dating then he wouldn't be."

Vince nodded his head as that did make sense, "you don't think it could be Luke could you?"

"Luke? No I don't think so, why would he be hanging around again? Stephanie hasn't heard from him since he went to jail so I really don't think it has anything to do with him."

"I don't know what it is though Linda. She seems happy enough to me though and they are heading home on Saturday so it really can't be anything that is threatening to either hers or Alex's well-being."

"Maybe. I can always quiz Paul on Saturday as he is helping them move back home."

"Linda!"

She put her hands up in defence, "what? I'm only looking out for my daughter and grandson."

"Mmmhmm, sure you are. Just be nice to the poor boy and don't scare him away because if he likes her as much as you seem to think she likes him then give him a chance and don't scare him away, I want her to be happy."

"I do too Vince, I do too."

With that she got up and headed inside to tidy up.


	29. Chapter 29

After she had bathed Alex and put him to bed and he was sound asleep Stephanie sat down on her bed and spread the papers out across her bed ready to catch up on on the work she had to do.

Stephanie's light was still on when her parents went to bed at 11 so Vince decided to just stick his head in and check up on her.

Knocking gently on the door before he slowly pushed it open, "everything okay?"

She looked up from her work and smiled softly seeing her Dad stood there welcoming the brief distraction, "everything's fine, I'm just catching up on the work I missed this afternoon."

"Okay, don't work too late though as you have work again tomorrow."

"Yes Dad I know I have work tomorrow but I'm nearly done so I should be in bed within the next half hour. Is that okay with you?"

He laughed softly at her behaviour, "you're a big girl so if you're late for work tomorrow that is your problem not mine".

She shook her head, "night Dad."

"Night Steph."

Vince lingered in the doorway drawing her attention to his obvious want to talk more, "yes Dad?"

Walking further into the room he perched on the only clear piece of bed left, "you know your Mom is only worried about you right?"

Putting her laptop back on her bed she stretched her legs, "no, Mom is just being nosey."

"Stephanie that is not fair because you know she loves you and Alex very much and she just wants you to be happy and for you to both be safe."

"She has a funny way of showing that."

"Every Mother does, I'm sure Alex will say the same about you when he's older. Just take care of yourself and if you are ever in any trouble then we're here for you."

"I know you are and thank you."

Vince smiled as he stood up, "Goodnight Princess."

He kissed the top of her head before he left the room.

Picking her laptop back up she finished off her work before she shut the laptop off and packed all of her paperwork away ready for the next day.

When Stephanie walked into work the next day she smiled seeing Paul already sat at his desk, "if I didn't know better I would say you've been here all night."

Paul smiled at her, she seemed relatively cheery today, "well you do know better seeing as you rang me last night."

"Yes I did, your daughter tried using your phone as something to chew on."

He laughed, "hey now, I learnt a valuable lesson from that."

"Yeah never be stupid enough to leave your phone near where Lucy could grab it."

Playfully he glared at her, "charming, here I was going to offer to make you a cup of coffee but now I don't think I will bother. You can wade through all of the messages on your desk without coffee for that."

"Don't worry, I don't need your coffee." She held up her Starbucks coffee cup before walking into her office.

When lunchtime arrived Paul was more than happy to be able to run out and get some food as he was really hungry so once he had Stephanie's order he grabbed his jacket and headed out.

Once he had the food he made his way back to the office but as he rounded the corner he noticed a man stood there selling individual roses and he tossed up buying Stephanie one just to see her smile but decided not to and carried on walking.

As he passed the man selling the flowers he changed his mind and stopped, "I'll take one."

The man smiled brightly, "thank you, thank you sir."

He held out the flower towards Paul as he took out his money and handed it over, "Thank you."

"No thank you sir. May your lady friend enjoy."

Paul chuckled softly as he twirled the rose between his thumb and forefinger on the remaining walk back to the office.

When he arrived back in the offices Nikki smiled at him, "you're too kind Paul."

He laughed, "I'm so kind it is not for you."

Putting her hands over her heart she had a wounded look on her face, "you hurt me Paul, you hurt me deeply."

He continued to laugh and shake his head as he passed her on the way to the elevator.

As he reached Stephanie's office he put the flower behind his back before he walked inside and placed the bag of food on her desk, "lunchtime, all work must cease."

Stephanie looked up from her work slightly stunned, "I will work through my lunch if I want to"

"No, no you won't. I say you're breaking for lunch so break you will do."

She was about to protest when he revealed the flower from behind his back, "for you."

"Are you serious?"

Paul nodded and placed the flower on the desk in front of her, "deadly. I thought you could do with a little cheering up this week."

Lifting the rose from the desk to her nose to smell she inhaled deeply, "it's beautiful, thank you."

She placed the rose back on her desk before she pulled the food out of the bag, "sit down and join me. If I have to break then you've got to keep me company."

He pulled the chair out opposite her and sat down, "it would be my pleasure."

The rest of the week was passing quietly with not a sound from Luke which was a relief for Stephanie but also slightly unnerving however she was determined not to let it prey on her mind.

It was close to five o'clock on Friday night and Stephanie was in such a good mood she was going to go home a little early and send Paul home too, "Paul you can leave early if you want."

Paul shook his head, "not unless you're leaving at the same time as me."

"Don't worry I am. So do you have any plans for the weekend? I have plans with the worlds ugliest man." She bit her lip to try and avoid the massive grin that threatened to erupt.

"Oh that is charming. Maybe, just maybe, I won't help you this weekend now."

"You can't do that, I was only pulling your leg. Please don't abandon me and make me lift all of those heavy boxes all by myself." And she pouted for effect.

He couldn't help but laugh at her, he had never seen her so cheerful and playful before, "I suppose I could be persuaded to follow through with my promise. What time do you want me in the morning?"

She couldn't help but giggle at his choice of words, "Nice choice of words, I don't want you like that though so deflate that ego a little buddy. Seriously though, nine o'clock is fine, nobody likes getting up too early on a Saturday morning."

Smiling so she knew he didn't take it personally, "oh my feelings are hurt. I will see you at nine in the morning though, please make sure you're at least nearly ready because I know what you women are like."

"I will try my best but no promises. So are you ready to go yet?"

Unplugging his computer he rolled his eyes, "yes Ma'am."

He stood up putting his jacket on before he reached for her laptop case, "I'm all yours."

"I can carry that Paul."

He shrugged, "I know but I thought I would get in some practise of carrying bags for you for tomorrow so be quiet and just enjoy not having to carry it."

She smiled softly and followed him out of the office and down to the parking garage.

When they reached the parking garage Paul playfully put his arm around her shoulder, "so seeing as I'm moving in with you tomorrow do you think a guy can get a ride home?"

Laughing she elbowed him in the ribs before moving away from him, "in your dreams."

He shrugged, "oh well, can't blame a guy for trying."

Stephanie unlocked her car before opening the back door for him, "just put the laptop in there, it'll be okay."

Obeying orders he placed the laptop in the car before stepping back, "there you go. Have a safe trip home, tell Alex I look forward to seeing him again tomorrow and I will see you in the morning."

She cocked her head to the side, "you look forward to seeing Alex tomorrow?"

"Of course. I thought me and him could have a little male bonding time, once you're all settled in obviously."

She felt her eyes well with tears, Paul hardly knew Alex but yet he was happy to spend some quality time with him one on one, "thank you, thank you so much." And she grabbed Paul in a tight hug.

He rubbed her back gently, "it's okay, it will be my pleasure."

Pulling back she smiled softly, "see you tomorrow Paul."

Stephanie walked around the car and climbed into the drivers side before starting the engine and pulling out of her space to head home to Alex and to finish off the packing.


	30. Chapter 30

Paul woke up early Saturday morning as he still had a bit to finish off before he had to head over to Stephanie's parents.

The first thing he noticed when he walked out of his bedroom was the sound of somebody throwing up in the bathroom so he waited around in the hall to check up on whoever it was.

When his Mom walked out of the bathroom his face fell, "are you okay Mom?"

Patricia shook her head, "I've been up and down all night being sick. I'm sorry Paul but I don't think it would be a good idea for me to look after Lucy today."

"I agree."

"What are you going to do now?"

"I'll just take her with me and as I'll be carrying the boxes and stuff I'll just ask Steph to look after her. Now go back to bed and I will bring you some toast because I doubt Dad will."

She laughed softly, "you know your Dad so well. Thank you Paul."

He then turned to head downstairs to make his Mom some toast before he went to shower.

Once he had made the toast, showered and dressed he busied himself packing a bag full of clothes, diapers and toys for Lucy before she woke up and his attention was diverted to getting her ready.

As soon as Lucy was dressed and fed Paul placed her in her bouncy chair so he could finish getting her ready.

When he had all of the bags finished and placed at the door he shook his head as he looked at the three big bags and one small one that were lined up, "how can one small child need so much stuff for one night?"

He ran all four bags out to the car placing them in the trunk before he headed back inside to put Lucy in her carrier.

As he walked back into the lounge he smiled seeing his Mom sat the other side of the room just watching Lucy, "feeling any better?"

"Not really but I needed to get out of bed. Have you got everything you need?"

He nodded, "and then some I think. It's better to be safe than sorry. Are you sure you'll be okay tonight? I mean I'm sure I can come back if you need me to?"

"Paul I will be fine, I have your Father here to look after me and anyway Stephanie needs you more than I do, trust me."

Reluctantly he nodded before he picked Lucy up out of the bouncy chair and placed her in her carrier before standing upright with the handle of the carrier in his hand before he grabbed the diaper bag and slung it over his shoulder, "call me if you need me, I'm not that far away."

Patricia rolled her eyes, "I will be fine so I suggest you leave now before I strangle you."

Paul laughed before kissing his Mom's cheek before he walked past her and out of the door.

Stephanie rubbed her temples as she attempted to get Alex to eat his breakfast, she was trying to pack up all of their things at the same time but with Alex refusing to sit still and eat it was making life hard, "for crying out loud Alex, just sit down and eat!"

Linda walked into the kitchen behind her daughter, "relax Steph, he's just excited."

Stephanie spun around to face her Mom, "relax? Paul is going to be here within the hour, I still haven't finished packing and Alex refuses to eat his breakfast. How can I possibly relax?"

Linda put her hands on her daughters shoulders, "take a deep breath. Paul will wait for you I'm sure, if you need help packing I'm here and so is your Dad and does it really matter if he doesn't eat right this second? I assume I'll be watching him whilst you take the stuff over to your house so I can hopefully calm him down and get him to eat at some point even if you can't get him to eat right now."

Stephanie sighed heavily, "I hadn't even thought about you watching him whilst we moved the stuff, thank you."

"That's what Mothers are here for. Now you go and pack whilst me and Alex have some bonding over breakfast."

Reluctantly Stephanie left the kitchen and headed upstairs to try and complete all of the packing up there, she'd finish with the toys after.

As Paul pulled up at Stephanie's parents house he couldn't help but get intimidated by the size of it, where he was living with his parents currently had to be at least a quarter of the size of it, "looks like money runs in the family Lucy."

Almost reluctantly he parked the car and got out before unbuckling Lucy's carrier and shutting the door and walking up the stairs to the front door to ring the doorbell.

Alex was pretty much bouncing off the walls so Linda had only managed to get him to eat one pancake when the doorbell rang, looking at her watching seeing it was just before 9 she knew of only one person this would be and she was excited to meet him.

Linda got up from the table and went to open the door, as she swung the door open she was a little surprised to see whoever it was carrying a baby which meant this couldn't be Paul, "Can I he . . ."

Before she got to finish her question Alex came running from behind her, "."

Paul laughed as Alex collided with his leg and clung on tightly, "hello little man. How are you?"

Alex looked up at Paul and smiled brightly, "going home."

"Yes you are." He then turned his attention to the lady stood in front of him, "I'm sorry, my name is Paul and I'm here to see Stephanie."

Linda raised her eyebrow, "t_he_ Paul?"

He shrugged, "maybe?"

"Grammy you 'member Paul? He's Cam's friend."

She laughed softly at the little boy, "ohhhh _that_ Paul. It's very nice to meet you, my name is Linda and I'm Stephanie's Mother."

Paul reached out his free hand to shake hers, "it's very nice to meet you Mrs McMahon. Is Stephanie in?"

Just as he asked that she came walking down the stairs, "Alex leave the poor man alone so he can at least enter the house."

Alex reluctantly let go of Paul's leg and walked back inside to stand by his Grandma giving Paul the opportunity to step inside the house for the first time.

As he stepped inside the foyer Paul couldn't help but look around, it was absolutely massive, "you have a very nice house Mrs McMahon."

"Linda, please call me Linda. So who's the baby?"

Stephanie sighed softly as she joined her Mom and Alex, "remember Alex told you he had a daughter? This would be her."

Linda looked between Paul, Lucy and Stephanie, "you never mentioned she was so young."

Rolling her eyes she ignored her Mom, "I thought your Mom was going to look after Lucy. Not that I mind that you brought her now or anything."

"She was going to but she's come down with some bug so I thought it would be best to bring her with me and not ask my Mom to look after her. You're okay with that right? I mean I know it will be difficult with two children and boxes but we can do it."

A light bulb went off in Linda's head as she listened to the conversation, "why don't you leave the Lucy here with me and Vince? He should be done with work soon and we are already watching Alex whilst you move so it wouldn't be much extra to watch Lucy as well."

Paul wasn't sure, he had only just met her and didn't want to impose, "I don't know Mrs McMahon. That is a really generous offer and I appreciate it greatly but I don't want to impose."

Linda shook her head, "you won't be imposing, I offered. So what do you say?"

He looked at Stephanie who shrugged, "it's up to you Paul."

"As long as you're sure."

Linda nodded, "I am. Why don't you go and get her diaper bag and whilst me and Lucy get to know each other?"

Paul nervously handed the carrier over to Linda before walking back out to the car to grab her diaper bag and get a few toys.

As soon as Paul was out of earshot Linda turned to Stephanie, "what on Earth are you doing with him? His daughter can't be more than eight months old."

Stephanie sighed, "for your information she is six months old. It's not like that though, you don't know the whole story."

"I know that something isn't right when an extremely young child is with her Father and there is no mention of the Mother."

Stephanie glared at her Mom not wanting to have this conversation here and now, "not now Mom."

"Why not? Have you got something to hide in regards to your relationship with him? Or more specifically has **he** got something to hide as to why the Mother isn't around."

What neither Linda nor Stephanie had realised was that Paul had rejoined them in the house, "I have got nothing to hide Mrs McMahon. Lucy's Mother abandoned her when she was just six weeks old leaving her home all by herself whilst I was at work and leaving me with a mountain of debt, so much so that I had to sell the house and move back home with my parents just to stop the bailiffs coming to the door. I have heard nothing from my ex since the day she ran off so I'm raising Lucy as best as I can with my parents help."

Linda's face fell, "oh, I'm sorry I didn't realise any of that."

He just shrugged, he had nothing to hide and nothing to be ashamed of, "don't worry about it."

Stephanie wanted things to relax so she grabbed Paul's hand, "come and help me finish packing please."

She dragged him towards the stairs forcing him to just drop the diaper bag on the floor before she pulled his arm out of the socket.

When they got upstairs Stephanie dropped his hand and led him to Alex's room. Once they were inside she sat on the floor next to the stack of clothes she was trying to pack, "I'm sorry for what my Mom said."

Paul sat down next to her, "don't be, she's your Mom and she's worried about you I get that."

"But she shouldn't have been so rude and judgemental about what happened between you and Lucy's Mom."

He shrugged his shoulders as he was used to that reaction now, "I'm used to it. It's nice to see that she cares so much about your welfare."

"Maybe so but you shouldn't have to deal with people acting like that, it isn't your fault she ran off."

Paul couldn't help but feel touched by her concern, "it is just the way the world works, they're used to the Dad's running off not the Mom's."

She couldn't help the scowl that adorned her face, "society sucks."

Paul couldn't help himself and he gripped her hand loosely and leant across to kiss her cheek letting his lips linger there briefly before he pulled back again, "I know."

The two of them locked eyes and their heads slowly moved closer preparing to kiss but before they got that far Vince entered the room, "Steph have you got any of Alex's old toys here that Lucy could play with?"

Paul pulled back and dropped Stephanie's hand, "I've got some in the car."

He quickly got up and practically ran out of the room grateful to be getting some air to clear his head and gain control of himself again.


	31. Chapter 31

Paul rushed outside as soon as Vince had interrupted them, he needed some fresh air to clear his head as he nearly made one of the stupidest decisions of his life.

He popped the trunk of his car and went through the bags looking for some smallish toys for Lucy to play with. Once he was satisfied with the toys he had found he slammed the trunk shut and leant on it breathing in the fresh air and trying to clear his head.

Having seen Paul practically run out of the room Vince looked at his daughter, "did I interrupt something?"

Stephanie shook her head at her Dad, "no Dad, of course not. What gives you that idea anyway?"

"Oh nothing. Everything okay?"

She smiled softly, "everything's fine. I'll have all of this packed and out of your hair in no time."

Vince just nodded and turned around to leave her to it.

Once her Dad had left Stephanie closed her eyes and rubbed her temples gently, "how could I have been so stupid? I can't let that happen again."

Paul walked back into the house just as Vince reached the bottom of the stairs, "I'll just take these toys into Mrs McMahon and then I will go and help Steph finish packing."

"Yes that's fine Paul. Can I ask you something first? Man to man of course."

"Sure." Paul shifted his feet uncomfortably dreading where this was going.

Vince wasn't sure how to broach the subject so he decided to just come out and say it, "you like her don't you?"

Paul's eyes widened and his mouth dropped open, "I . . . I don't know what you mean Sir. Stephanie is a very nice lady."

Vince shook his head, "I didn't mean like that, I meant in a romantic sense. You can be honest with me here."

Paul glanced up the stairs and glanced towards the lounge to make sure they were still alone before he dropped his head, "yes I do Sir. I understand that she doesn't like me like that though and even if she did your wife would not approve."

"You what? What do you mean my wife would not approve?"

Paul realised he had just put his foot in it so he back pedalled, "I didn't mean anything by it Sir, I'm sure it was just a misunderstanding."

Vince frowned, "I know my daughter Paul and I know you make her happy so don't shut down any hopes of being with her please, just be honest with her and gentle with her heart and leave my wife to me. By the way, please call me Vince, this 'sir' nonsense makes me feel old."

"I will try my best and I'm sorry Vince."

Vince just smiled and nodded motioning for Paul to go into the lounge.

Paul walked past Vince and went into the lounge smiling softly seeing Alex sat on the couch with Lucy beside him on Linda's lap, "I've got some toys. Will these be okay?"

Linda looked up at him and smiled, "those will be great, thank you."

He placed the toys on the floor before he knelt next to Linda and took Lucy's hand gently rubbing the back of it with his thumb, "you be a good girl for Linda and Vince." He then turned his attention to Linda, "if there are any problems whatsoever let me know and I'll be back here in a hurry."

She laughed softly at him, "you're as bad as Stephanie. We'll be fine, Lucy will be fine, everything will be fine."

He laughed softly as he stood up, "sorry, I can't help it. I swear it drives my Mom mad."

"Your Mom watches Lucy?"

"Oh yeah all the time when I'm at work. I couldn't do any of this without my parents as they took us in when I had to sell the house and they watch Lucy whilst I'm at work, they're amazing though and I love them very much."

Linda was slightly taken aback by his honesty and openness, maybe he wasn't as bad as she thought he was, "well it is good to see you have supportive family around you."

"I do, I really really do. I'd better go back and help Stephanie though."

With that he turned around and walked out of the lounge and ran back up the stairs two at a time.

When he got back to Alex's room he silently dropped to the floor next to Stephanie and just started helping her pack things away.

Once Paul was out of earshot Vince glared at his wife, "I don't know what you said to him but he doesn't think you'd approve of him dating Steph."

Linda was slightly taken aback, "what are you talking about?"

"I had a little chat with him after something I saw and he said even if he did like Stephanie romantically, which for the record it is obvious he does, then you wouldn't approve. I told you to not lay into him."

"I didn't lay into him . . . directly. He kind of overheard me talking to Stephanie."

He shook his head, "you can be so silly sometimes Linda."

She just ignored her husband and focussed on the two children in the room because now was not the time or the place to argue.

Upstairs Stephanie and Paul were packing in silence, both of them knew what had nearly happened between them but neither of them were brave enough to broach the subject.

As soon as upstairs was packed Stephanie stood up, "well that's one area finished off. The only things I've got left to do is pack up the rest of Alex's toys downstairs and we'll be done."

Paul nodded, "how about you go and pack up the toys and I'll bring all of these boxes downstairs and start loading the cars. Sound like a fair deal to you?"

"Well not really, you're carrying around boxes and I'm just packing them."

He laughed, "well I think it's fair and what I say goes."

She raised her eyebrow, "oh it does does it? And what if I don't want to do as you say?"

"I don't know, I've not thought that far ahead."

Stephanie couldn't help but laugh at him, "typical man. Are you sure you'll be okay on your own though? I know we'll get done twice as fast but I don't want you falling and breaking your neck or putting your back out."

"I'll be fine, don't worry about me just worry about getting things packed up."

After mock saluting him she headed downstairs to get the toys packed up. As she passed the lounge to go to the toy room she decided to just poke her head in and see how things were going but as she did her heart melted seeing Alex on the couch with Lucy sat on his lap playing with a toy as he cuddled her.

Stepping into the room she made her presence known, "having fun?"

Everyone's heads turned at the sound of her voice, "I is Mommy. I like Lucy, can we keep her?"

She bit her lip to stop herself laughing at the cuteness, "I don't think so Alex, I'm pretty sure she'll want to go home with her Daddy tomorrow."

His little face fell, "can I haf 'nother one peas?"

"Not right now Alex, maybe in the future."

His little shoulders raised in a shrug, "'kay."

Stephanie just shook her head and walked out of the room to pack up the toys.

As soon as Stephanie had finished packing up the remaining toys she went outside to see how Paul to see him shutting the trunk to his now full car and as her eyes travelled to her car she noticed her car was full too, "you found my car keys then?"

"Actually your Dad gave them to me but it's all the same. The cars are all packed so we can head over to yours when you're ready as we'll have to make two trips for all of the stuff and one for the kids."

"Now is fine with me, the sooner we get it started the sooner it will be done."

He laughed, "couldn't have said it better myself. Let's get going then." He threw her car keys to her before he jumped in his car to follow her to hers.

Stephanie called into the house to let her parents know they were leaving before she climbed into her car and set off for her house.

Once they reached her house she looked up at the outside, it still looked the same as when she had left but it felt odd to be home. Walking to the front door she unlocked it before pushing it open wide so they could bring the boxes in.

One by one between them they got the first load of boxes into the house before they set off for her parents to get the second load so that she could get settled back in as soon as possible.

As soon as they had the rest of the boxes back at her place they allowed themselves a brief rest which consisted of sitting on the porch steps.

Paul was enjoying the break but he was conscious that her parents had the kids still, "we should get the kids from your parents soon, I don't want Lucy to become a burden to them."

"I know I know but I think we have earned this five minute break. Would you be happy and comfortable to pick Alex up with Lucy instead of me coming back with you? If you could then I could get started cleaning the Nursery so it's hopefully ready for Lucy by the time you return."

"I don't have a car seat for him though."

She nodded her head in acknowledgement, "the car seat I have for him is actually at my parents so you would just need to install it and you'd be good to go."

"Well in that case it would be my pleasure. I'll get going now because by the time I drive there and get the car seat installed and drive back again it will probably take a good half an hour to an hour."

Paul stood up from the steps brushing his jeans down, "I will be back soon."

He walked over to his car and climbed in before starting the engine giving her one quick glance before he drove off.

Stephanie watched Paul drive off before she got up brushing the dust from her trousers and heading back inside kicking the front door shut behind her as she walked through to the kitchen to get a bowl of soapy water to clean the Nursery.

As she stood at the sink allowing the water to warm up she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket indicating she had a text so she pulled her phone out and flipped it open to read it. The text was from an unknown number and against her better judgement she clicked to open it and immediately she regretted that decision.

_Having fun moving in with your new boyfriend? I'm still not giving up on you, I WILL get you back. Luke xx_

Stephanie quickly put her phone back in her pocket before she went around checking that all of the windows and doors were shut and locked shutting the curtains as she did so. The knowledge that Luke had been watching them scared her and she really didn't want to see him or for him to see her.

Once she was satisfied all of the windows and doors were locked and he couldn't see in from downstairs she went back to the kitchen where the water was still running and she got a bucket of hot soapy water and a cloth before she headed upstairs to clean the nursery.


	32. Chapter 32

As he pulled into Stephanie's parents drive Paul laughed as Alex jumped up from wherever he was sat and started jumping up and down trying to see behind Paul's car.

He stopped the car and climbed out walking over to the porch steps with Alex still jumping trying to look behind him, "Mommy?"

"She's not coming."

Before he could actually finish what he was saying the little boys lip came out in a pout and started to quiver on the verge of tears, "she left me?"

Paul quickly scooped the little boy up in his arms, "not at all. Your Mom has stayed back at the house to clean your old nursery for Lucy to sleep in tonight and I'm here to get you and Lucy."

"Really?"

Paul nodded his head, "absolutely. I don't think your Mommy would leave you ever. Why don't you run into the house and help your Grandma get Lucy ready whilst me and your Grandpa get your seat in the car."

"Kay."

He then bent down putting Alex back on the floor and watched him run off inside shouting something to Linda as he went.

As soon as Alex was inside the house Paul turned to Vince, "so could you help me with the car seat please? I've only just gotten the hang of Lucy's car seat, I don't think I'll be able to master Alex's too."

Vince laughed softly, "it's not that hard but I will help. Just let me get it a second." He then headed just inside the front door and picked it up before he carried it out to Paul's car and the two of them proceeded to install it.

Once the car seat was installed both men headed back into the house to see how Linda was fairing with a very excited Alex.

Surprisingly when they got into the lounge he was sat on the floor next to Lucy in her carrier and was playing with one of her toys with her, "what did you do to him Linda?"

Linda laughed at her husband, "a little stretching of the truth. I told him if he didn't sit quietly the two of you would never be done so he would never get home."

Paul shook his head and smiled, "well everything's all set for us to leave. Thank you so much for watching Lucy for me and I'm sorry if she was any trouble."

She shook her head, "she was a little angel, compared to Alex anyway. Maybe we'll see you again some day?"

He shrugged, "maybe, who knows?"

Picking Lucy's carrier up he slung the diaper bag over his shoulder, "ready to go Alex?"

Alex was quickly to his feet standing by Paul's side as Linda and Vince walked them out to the car to get both kids strapped in.

Once the kids were strapped into the car Paul thanked Vince and Linda once more before he too climbed into the car and they were on their way back to Stephanie's.

When they pulled up in front of the house Alex would have been out of his seat if it wasn't for the straps holding him in so quickly to avoid any injury Paul got out of the car and undid his straps, "stay here whilst I get Lucy out and we'll go in together."

Reluctantly Alex stood anxiously by the car whilst Paul undid Lucy's carrier and grabbed her diaper bag before he shut the door and locked the car and they walked up the porch steps together.

As they walked up the steps Paul noticed that all of the curtains downstairs were closed and fear pooled in the bottom of his stomach because he knew they weren't when he left.

Paul tried turning the knob but as it was locked so he couldn't open it so he knocked gently on the door and waited.

Stephanie was just finishing off cleaning the nursery when she heard a knock at the door, just as she was about to push herself up off of the floor her phone vibrated again so she pulled it out to see if it was a message from Paul.

Again she had a message from a number she didn't recognise but it wasn't the same number as earlier, her finger hovered over the button to open it before she hit it figuring it couldn't be Luke again.

_You've worked hard since we split up I see. Don't worry I'll treat the kids as my own when we're back together. Luke xx_

Quickly a second text arrived at the bottom of the first.

_Are you going to let your little family in or not? Luke xx_

She stared at the screen before she angrily threw her phone against the wall shattering it into pieces.

The hammering on the door brought her out of her little daze as she could hear Alex calling her name. Pushing herself up from the floor she headed down the stairs unlocking the door and letting them in.

As soon as the door was open a crack Alex pushed himself through the gap and went running straight for his play room.

Paul waited patiently until the door was open fully before he stepped inside with Lucy, "I thought you were leaving us out there all day."

He pouted for effect but didn't get a smile or a laugh or anything from her, "what's happened?"

Stephanie was quick to reply, "nothing happened."

He cocked his head to the side and watched as she shut and firmly locked the door, "mm hmm. That's why you just locked us in like we're prisoners is it?"

Spinning around angrily she glared at him, "if you don't like it you can get out and not stay. I'm not holding you prisoner."

Putting his one hand in the air in defence, "I didn't mean it like that, I'm sorry. So where do we start? This little one needs a nap."

Stephanie's face softened towards him, "why don't you lay her down in the nursery whilst I check on Alex and we can get unpacking boxes? The baby monitor should be by the crib and the nursery is the only open door up there right now."

He smiled softly and nodded before he carried Lucy up the stairs.

As he stepped inside the nursery the first thing he noticed was the shattered pieces of what looked to be a phone on the floor against the wall but he ignored them and focussed on getting Lucy out of the carrier and into the crib.

Once she was settled in the crib he turned the baby monitor on and made sure it worked before he walked over to the pieces on the floor and picked them up one by one and put them in his pocket before he attached the baby monitor to his belt and picked up the bowl of soapy water and took it all downstairs.

Placing the bowl by the sink he went off in search of Stephanie and found her in the play room with Alex going through some boxes of toys, "Steph can I have a word please?"

Lifting her head from the box she turned to look at Paul's serious face, "umm sure. You keep unpacking and putting things away Alex and we'll be back now."

Getting up from the floor she followed Paul out of the play room and back to the kitchen where he shut the door behind him, "what's wrong?"

Placing the baby monitor on the counter he took the pieces of the broken phone out of his pocket and laid them on the counter also, "care to tell me what happened here?"

Shrugging nonchalantly she tried to pass it off, "oh it was nothing, I just tripped over the bowl and accidentally threw my phone against the wall."

He was confused, "but the bowl wasn't on the floor."

"Uh yeah, I moved it after I tripped over it."

"But the floor wasn't wet."

She was getting frustrated by his accusations, "I didn't actually spill any water on the floor. Are you done with the damn twenty questions now?"

Running his hand through his hair wearily he sighed, "I guess."

"Good."

She turned to walk out of the door but before she could he gripped her arm loosely, "you would tell me if Luke had been in contact right?"

She nodded silently without turning around, she didn't trust her voice to say the words or trust herself to look him in the eye and lie to him.


	33. Chapter 33

Paul and Stephanie remained stood there for what felt like an eternity with him just gripping her arm loosely and her with her back to him with neither of them wanting to break to break the silence as she didn't trust her voice and he didn't trust himself to keep his anger in check.

Eventually she pulled her arm free of his loose grip and walked out of the kitchen. Looking into the playroom as she passed to check up on Alex she smiled softly seeing him putting all of his toys away so she made her way to the foyer and picked up a box to carry upstairs and put it all away.

He watched her silently from the kitchen doorway as she checked on Alex and then carried the box up the stairs, he was not stupid and knew something was going on and he would bet money that Luke was behind it but if she wouldn't open up to him he couldn't make her and that hurt that she didn't seem to trust him.

Reluctantly he walked out into the foyer and took the rest of the boxes upstairs for her placing them to the side of the spacious landing before he went back downstairs to focus his attention on Alex.

Pasting on a smile he walked into the playroom and placed the baby monitor on the window sill, "so where are we at buddy?"

Alex had a look of pure concentration on his face as he balanced some toys in his arms walking them over to the toy box the other end of the room before he dropped them all in, "I putting them 'way."

Paul laughed softly, "do you need any help putting things higher up?"

The little boy nodded his head as he went back to sorting out his toys so Paul joined him on the floor and tried to help but it only earned him a frown, "I do it, I do it."

Putting his hands up in defence as he chuckled he shuffled back a little, "my bad, you keep up the good work."

Upstairs Stephanie was quietly sorting out Alex's room putting his clothes and other little things away tidily, she had noticed that Paul had brought all of the boxes upstairs but was leaving her alone and that was okay with her.

Before too long Alex and Paul were finished with the playroom and Stephanie was finished with the bedrooms.

She headed back downstairs to check up on the progress and laughed seeing both of them laying on their back on the floor, "tired are we?"

Alex sleepily lifted his head from the floor which told Stephanie everything she needed to know, "okay somebody around here needs a nap."

Alex crawled over to Paul, "uh oh, you in twuble."

Before he knew what was happening Paul had Alex over his shoulder and he was on his feet, "nope, I think it's all you buddy."

Carefully he pulled a giggling and wriggly little boy down from his shoulder and handed him over to Stephanie, "he's all yours. I'm going to make some coffee, want some?"

She shrugged taking Alex from him, "sure, thanks."

With that she carried Alex upstairs to put him down for a nap whilst Paul made the coffee.

Once the coffee was made and whilst he was waiting for Stephanie he started to attempt to put her phone back together so it at least worked.

As soon as Alex was out cold she headed back downstairs to deal with some awkward tension between her and Paul which wasn't her idea of heaven. Walking into the kitchen she smiled softly seeing him working on her phone, "forget it Paul, it's fucked."

He jumped startled by the sound of her voice, "I wanted to at least get it working for you."

Shaking her head she went and took the pieces out of his hands, "honestly forget it, it's not worth the effort as you'll never get it working again."

"Well let me head home for five minutes and I'll get you a spare phone I have hanging around that you can use until you can get a new one all of your own."

"NO!"

Paul was stunned by her outburst, "excuse me?"

Frightened at the tone of his voice it gave her flashbacks to Luke so she took a few steps away from him, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to speak to you like that."

His eyebrows shot up and he looked at her oddly, "what are you talking about? There isn't a problem with the way you spoke to me."

"Are you sure?"

He saw that her eyes were full of unshed tears so he placed both hands on her shoulders but watched as she shrank away from him, "I'm not going to hurt you, please believe me."

"I can't do this."

Before he could say anything she practically ran out of the room and up the stairs.

Pulling his phone out of his pocket he stared at it wondering who to call for advice when it lit up and started dancing in his hand, smiling softly he flipped it open and put it to his ear, "Kara, you don't know how glad I am to hear from you."

"Uh oh, that doesn't sound good. I was only calling to see if we were still on for this weekend but if you need to talk you know my ears are always open to you."

"Shit I forgot. Sorry I'm helping Steph move back home, long story, and I'm staying at hers tonight and I'm not sure when exactly we're heading home. We can probably do tomorrow afternoon though because I shouldn't imagine she will want me staying all day as she'll probably want time alone with Alex."

Kara smiled softly, "don't sweat it it's okay. I'll keep tomorrow afternoon free and you can just call me if you get home in time for me to come over and spend some time with you guys, even if it is just to bathe Lucy and put her to bed. So what's on your mind?"

Pulling out a kitchen chair he took a seat, "something is eating Stephanie and she won't tell me what it is. She broke her phone and I tried to fix it and she said not to as it's, in her words, 'fucked' and then I said I'd go home and grab my spare so she can use that but she practically screamed 'no' at me and then she got all frightened and apologised for the way she spoke to me and when I went to touch her she shrank away."

Kara crossed her legs on her sofa, "do you know if she has a history of . . . domestic abuse? Sorry I don't know how else to put it so it doesn't sound so blunt."

Silence fell over the two of them because he knew he shouldn't talk about it but it was all starting to make sense to him, he was kicking himself that he hadn't thought about it earlier.

Hearing the silence Kara knew her answer but knew he couldn't or wouldn't tell her so she decided to cut him some slack, "my gut is telling me she's been hit before because of the way she's spoken to somebody so my suggestion to you would be make sure she is one thousand percent certain that you will **not** hit her and just try to relax her and take her mind off the past. She has to trust you enough to be able to feel comfortable with you staying the night so just be your normal charming self and take care of her."

"Mmm hmm, thanks Kara."

She smiled softly, "not a problem. I'll let you go to make things cool between the two of you again, just text me tomorrow if I can come over to yours and what time and I'll be there."

"Thanks Kara, I'll text you either way tomorrow and if we can't do it tomorrow then next weekend we certainly will."

She laughed softly, "you have yourself a date. Bye Paul."

With that he hung up the phone and put it back in his pocket ready to make things right with Stephanie again.


	34. Chapter 34

After hanging up his phone Paul looked around the kitchen for something to use as a peace offering with Stephanie. His eyes fell on the kitchen window where he saw some pretty flowers in the garden so decided to pick one for her.

Once he had a flower for her he went back inside and headed up the stairs to talk to her but he had to take a detour when he heard Lucy fussing. Placing the flower on the side he scooped her up from her crib and got her comfortable in his arms before he picked the flower up again before walking down the hall.

When he reached a door that was cracked open a little he gently knocked on it shifting Lucy in his arms as she started to babble.

Hearing the babbling outside of her door Stephanie couldn't help but smile softly and shifted herself up into a sitting position, "come in."

Pushing the door open he smiled softly, "we come in peace."

Walking over to the bed he placed Lucy near Stephanie's legs before holding the flower out towards her, "forgive me?"

Reaching to take the flower from his outstretched hand she smiled softly, "I'm the one who needs to be forgiven, you did nothing wrong."

"Neither did you. Let's just pretend it never happened because we're likely to never agree on this."

Lucy babbled almost in agreement with her Dad and patted Stephanie's leg.

Laughing Stephanie picked Lucy up and sat her in her lap, "well I think Lucy wants us to move on so let's do that."

Paul leant against the wall and watched Stephanie as she focussed herself entirely on Lucy, she wasn't jumping around for joy but she didn't seem so sad any more.

Grateful for the distraction she put all of her energy into entertaining Lucy to keep Luke off her mind until Alex woke up.

It didn't take long for Alex to wake up from his nap and join Stephanie, Paul and Lucy in her bedroom.

Once he was fully awake Paul decided to have some male bonding with him, "Alex, would you like to play football?"

"Yaaaaaaaay."

Paul laughed, "I will take that as a yes. We will be out in the back garden playing football if you want us Steph, as long as you don't mind watching Lucy."

Shaking her head she rolled her eyes, "just go, we will be fine."

Picking Alex up Paul carried him downstairs before placing him on the floor watching as he ran off to get his ball.

Stephanie climbed off of her bed and carried Lucy into the nursery to change her before she took her downstairs so they could watch the boys play from the safety of the house.

After an hour of playing in the garden both Paul and Alex were hungry and Lucy was starting to get cranky because she was hungry also so as he came in from the garden Paul set about making her dinner.

Sitting at the table with Alex in her lap Stephanie watched Paul as he fed Lucy her dinner, he was so attentive towards her even as she ate, she found it quite adorable how he simply couldn't take his eyes off of his daughter.

Getting up to look in the cupboards to see what was on offer to eat she quickly decided that there was nothing to make a meal with, "take out it is. Is pizza alright for you Paul?"

Looking over his shoulder he laughed softly as Alex was eagerly nodding his head, "pizza is fine with me and I'll eat any toppings so just go with whatever you want."

Grabbing the flyer from the drawer she went into the other room to order their dinner.

Whilst they waited for their dinner to arrive Paul, Alex and Lucy cuddled up on the couch and watched some cartoons whilst Stephanie busied herself getting drinks, plates and cutlery ready for dinner.

Once the pizza arrived they all sat down to eat as a dysfunctional family before Paul had to bathe Lucy and put her to bed and then it was Stephanie's turn to bathe Alex and put him to bed which took a little longer than normal as he was so excited.

By the time Alex was settled and drifting off it was nearly half past eight and Stephanie was exhausted. Collapsing onto the couch when she got back downstairs she was almost ready for bed herself, "so tired."

Paul laughed softly, "tell me about it. Do you want to get a really early night or maybe watch a movie and then go up to bed?"

Lifting her shoulders she shrugged, "I'm easy."

He sniggered and got up from his seat before walking over to her bookcase that was full of DVD's, "I'll bear that in mind."

Going through the DVD's one by one he finally settled on 'The King's Speech', taking it off the shelf he went and put it in the player before taking a seat back on the opposite couch to Stephanie.

The two of them watched the movie in silence, as soon as it was over they were both ready to go to bed and get some much needed sleep as they were both exhausted.

Paul went and got the baby monitor from the playroom making sure it was all shut up as Stephanie turned everything off in the lounge before moving through the other rooms downstairs making sure everything was safely secured.

Once they were satisfied that everything was secure they made their way upstairs before separating and going to their separate bedrooms for a good night sleep.

Paul fell asleep relatively quickly once he climbed into bed however on the other hand Stephanie couldn't get to sleep, every sound outside or the creak of a floorboard had her on edge, her nerves were now completely being shot.

It was just after 2 when he heard whimpering over the baby monitor so due to them being in unfamiliar surroundings he got out of bed and went to check on Lucy to make sure she was okay. As he opened the bedroom door it squeaked causing him to wince, tiptoeing across the landing he seemed to stand on every noisy floorboard there was, pushing open the nursery door he was relieved when it didn't squeak.

When she heard the door squeak and then the floorboards squeak as someone walked across them she sat bolt upright in bed waiting and almost expecting Luke to walk through the door. As she listened for more noise she couldn't help the few tears that slid down her cheeks in fear, quickly blinking to try and clear her vision it just cause more tears to roll down her cheeks as her body succumbed to the tears.

Once he was satisfied that Lucy was okay Paul left the nursery pulling the door to behind him and going back across the landing. Just as he was about to enter the bedroom he could have sworn he heard whimpers so he quietly tip-toed down the corridor to investigate.

As he came to stand outside of Stephanie's room he realised the whimpers were coming from her room so he knocked softly on the door not expecting the small scream that greeted him causing him to push the door open and just walk inside hoping for the best.

Being as on edge as she was the knock at her bedroom door scared her and she couldn't help but scream, she only hoped it didn't wake Alex. She was relieved when Paul walked through her door but she couldn't stop the fresh tears that continued to fall from her eyes.

Upon seeing Stephanie crying he rushed over to the bed and sat on the edge pulling her into his arms holding her close, "shhhh, it's okay, it'll all be okay."

When he pulled her into his arms she just clung on tightly burying her face in his chest and cried all of the tears left she had to cry.

He held her tightly until her shoulders no longer were shaking with sobs and her breathing was less ragged before he slowly pulled away from her, "are you okay?"

She knew she should be honest with him but she just couldn't, "I'm fine."

Raising his eyebrow in disbelief he just looked at her, "really?"

She nodded so he shrugged and stood up, "I guess I'll go back to bed then."

He then started walking towards the door but stopped when he heard her sniff and almost whimper, "please stay."

Turning around his heart broke as he looked at her face, her eyes were so sad and she looked so scared and unhappy and he knew there was just one thing he was going to do.

Walking around the bed he placed the baby monitor on the little table before he pulled the duvet back and climbed in, "oooh this bed is comfortable."

Stephanie laughed despite herself as she watched him slide down the bed and get comfortable laying there but she remained sat watching him.

Once he was comfortable laying down he looked up at her and saw the almost hopeful expression on her face so he opened his arms wide, "come on then."

He smiled as he watched her smile and slide down in the bed quickly cuddling up to his side laying her head on his chest and draping her arm over his waist, "thank you."


	35. Chapter 35

Paul lay in bed quietly holding Stephanie in his arms as she clung to him tightly and he rubbed her arm to soothe her.

She lay on his chest holding onto him tightly and tried to relax as she breathed in his smell allowing it to relax her until she finally fell asleep. It was only when she was asleep that he allowed himself to drift back off to sleep also.

It was only a few short hours later when Paul was woken by the feel of somebody pulling on his arm. Sleepily he lifted his arm to rub his eyes before he started to look around to see where he was when he heard whispering, "Paul, Paul."

At this point he thought he was going crazy and hearing things as the voice was so faint so lifting his head he looked down to see that Stephanie was still sound asleep on his chest so turning his head to the side he was relieved to see Alex stood there, "morning buddy. Everything okay?"

Alex shook his head, "I hungwy but Mommy's seeping, she'll be mad if I wakes her."

He couldn't help but chuckle at the little boy as he didn't want to wake his Mom but was happy to wake him, "how about I take you downstairs and we see what we can find?"

The little boy nodded so Paul gently threw back the covers before carefully sliding out from beneath Stephanie and got out of bed at which point he pulled the covers back up over her and brushed the hair from her face.

Once he was satisfied that she was still asleep he picked up the baby monitor and ushered the little boy out of the room quietly shutting the door behind him.

Placing his hand on the little boys shoulder he guided him towards the stairs to see what was available for him to make to eat.

When they reached the kitchen he pulled a chair out for Alex making sure he was sat safely before he went through the cupboards one by one, "alright, we have cereals, cereals and some out of date pancake mix."

"Pancakes!"

Chuckling to himself he went looking for the necessary cooking implements to get breakfast started.

As he started to cook the pancakes Paul heard Lucy start to babble over the monitor and realised she was now awake but she seemed pretty content babbling to herself so he was just going to keep his fingers crossed she didn't start screaming before he was done cooking.

Stephanie stretched as she woke from a peaceful slumber touching Paul's side of the bed to see it was still warm but definitely cooling so he hadn't left that long ago. Sitting up in bed she felt relaxed, spending the night in his warms was the best night sleep she had had in a very long time and it felt so right. Shaking those thoughts from her head she climbed out of bed to see where he had gotten to.

As she walked out of her bedroom she noticed Alex's door was wide open which in her mind meant just one thing, he must be downstairs with Paul and that is why he had left her bed. Walking past the nursery she heard the faint sound of Lucy babbling to herself so she pushed the door open and went to check on her.

Just as he placed a small plate of pancakes on the table in front of Alex he heard more movement over the radio, "awww poor baby, is your Daddy neglecting you? That's not fair is it, let's go and give him a piece of our mind."

He stood back and leant against the counter waiting for Stephanie and Lucy to come downstairs and join them in the kitchen.

Balancing Lucy on her hip as she walked downstairs it felt so right to be walking downstairs baby in arms to find Paul.

Pushing the door open she smiled seeing Alex at the table eating and Paul leaning on the counter clearly waiting for them, "here is your mean Daddy Lucy."

Lucy just babbled excitedly seeing her Daddy in front of him and reached for him.

He walked over to Stephanie and Lucy and reached for his daughter, "thanks for getting her for me."

With a cheeky smile she said, "well **someone** had to."

Faking offence he put a hand over his heart, "oh really?" Putting on a fake female voice he said, "well like oh my God **someone** had to like feed your son because like you were like still in bed like."

She laughed handing Lucy over to him, "do you realise how stupid you sound?"

He shrugged, "doesn't bother me, I like seeing you smile."

She blushed and turned her attention to her son, "you've got pancakes for breakfast huh?"

Alex nodded and with a mouthful of food spoke, "they're yummy."

"Alex what have I told you about talking with your mouth full? Don't do it because it's rude."

"Sorry."

She smiled softly, "it's okay, just don't do it again. So Paul, what do I get for breakfast?"

He shrugged, "fresh air? You don't actually have a lot here in the way of food."

"Ha! Ha! You're so funny. Who made you Mr Comedian this morning?"

"Who made you Miss Cheery Pants? I was going to cook the rest of the pancake mixture if that is good enough for you?"

Stephanie smiled softly, "that would be great thanks. Shall I feed Lucy for you?"

Paul smiled at her, "that would be great, thanks."

He handed Lucy back to Stephanie before turning to cook the pancakes whilst she fastened Lucy in the high chair and got her breakfast ready.

After everyone had eaten Alex was watching cartoons in the lounge, Lucy was having fun in her high chair and Stephanie and Paul were sharing dishes duty.

They were about halfway through the dishes when he stopped briefly, "what happened last night Steph?"

Chewing her lip nervously she focussed on drying the plate in her hand so much so that Paul was concerned she was going to rub the pattern off of it so he reached and took the plate from her hand and placed it on the side before gripping both of her hands loosely in his, "please talk to me."

He rubbed the back of her hands with his thumbs hoping it would relax her enough to open up to him even if it was making her hands soaking.

After staring at their joined hands for what seemed like an eternity she lifted her head to look at him, "truthfully?"

He nodded, "that would be nice yes."

She went to pull her hands from his grip and put some space between them but he kept hold, "I'm not letting you walk away, I want you to know that I am here for you."

"I lied about my phone, I didn't trip over anything I deliberately threw it against the wall. Luke texted me, I didn't know it was him when I got the texts but they scared me and made me angry at the same time so I threw my phone against the wall to make it stop."

As she spoke he felt his body tense with anger but he knew she didn't need that so sighing heavily he tried to dispel it, "what did he say?"

Shaking her head she refused to tell him, "it doesn't matter."

"It matters to me."

"He was watching us, that is all you are getting out of me. That is kind of why I was so on edge last night, I was panicking that he was going to break in and come after me and I was scared out of my mind. I'm sorry you had to deal with that Paul."

Violently he shook his head, "don't be stupid, there is nothing for you to be sorry about. I am glad I was here with you and I could protect you and make you feel safer."

She couldn't help the soft smile that now adorned her face, "you definitely made me feel safer, thank you."

"It was my pleasure. Promise next time you will tell me he's in contact though and not keep it a secret from me please?"

Reluctantly she nodded, "only if you promise to get your fat butt moving with these dishes."

Laughing he dropped her hands and turned dipping his hands in the warm water he splashed it towards her causing her to squeal and take a few steps back before she twisted the towel that was in her hands and whipped his backside with it which started a water whipping fight between them.

Their little fight only halted when Alex walked into the kitchen because of all of the noise.

When Alex walked into the room both adults stopped playing like children and went about tidying up their mess whilst Alex stood there watching them.

As soon as the mess was cleared up Stephanie looked down at her now soaking pyjamas, "I think I need a shower. I will dry the dishes when I'm done, come on Alex."

Gripping the little boys arm as she headed out of the kitchen leaving Alex no time to protest at his removal from the kitchen.

Paul couldn't help the silly grin that was on his face after their little fight, it had been a long time since he had been able to just relax and have fun like that and it felt good, especially having fun with Stephanie because the more time he spent with her the stronger his feelings for her grew.

After she had dressed Alex she sent him back downstairs to Paul whilst she showered.

After the dishes were washed he went to take Lucy into the lounge as Alex reached the bottom of the stairs, "cartoon time Alex?"

The little boy nodded and raced into the living room almost knocking Paul over in his rush.

Just as Paul collapsed onto the sofa after putting Lucy on her play mat the phone started to ring, knowing Stephanie was in the shower he reached to answer it, "hello? Stephanie's home."

After a brief pause he laughed, "hi Shawn . . . I'm sure Alex would love Cam's company later but if you come over you've got to bring some groceries, the cupboards are practically bare here . . . uh huh . . . okay great, we'll see you later."

Returning the phone to the cradle he turned to Alex who was looking at him hopefully, "that was Uncle Shawn, he's coming over later with Cameron and Auntie Rebecca."

Alex bounced up and down on the sofa with excitement, "yaaaaaaay."

Paul was happy that they were coming over but he was kind of sad too, it would no longer be just Stephanie, him and the kids.


	36. Chapter 36

After her nice long shower Stephanie climbed out drying her body off before putting on some jeans and a t-shirt and throwing her hair up into a messy ponytail as she had more work to do around the house.

Making her way downstairs she shook her head seeing Paul and Alex totally engrossed in the cartoons on TV, "are you planning to stay in your pyjamas all day Paul?"

He shrugged, "I might. I don't think Shawn and Rebecca will mind."

"Shawn and Rebecca?"

Before Paul had chance to answer Alex did for him, "they's coming later. Now shhhhh."

Rolling her eyes she shook her head, "since when?"

Paul frowned, "Shawn called when you were in the shower. I asked them to bring some groceries with them."

"I see. It will be nice to see them."

They both got a glare from Alex, "shhh, I watching."

Rolling his eyes Paul got up from the couch and ushered Stephanie just outside the living room, "if there is a problem with them coming over then let me know and I'll call and tell them not to bother."

She shook her head, "no problem, I'm just surprised. I'm going to make sure the kitchen is tidy before I do some cleaning."

"Don't clean Steph, just relax and have fun with Alex."

"The house won't clean itself."

He shrugged, "the house is also not going anywhere. One day won't kill you. I will even go and get dressed if you promise to take the day off."

"I'm sold." And she laughed, "now go and get dressed scruffy."

"Yes Ma'am." He mock saluted her before heading back into the lounge to get Lucy to dress her also.

Stephanie followed him into the lounge before she sat on the couch next to Alex and pulled him close to cuddle up with him and enjoy cartoons with him.

Once Paul and Lucy were dressed they joined them back in the lounge to continue the cartoon marathon.

After an hour Alex got bored of cartoons and dragged Paul to the play room to play some games with him, he wanted to make the most of having a man around the house.

When Paul and Alex left the room Stephanie picked Lucy up from the floor and placed her on her stomach as she reclined fully on the couch, it was the first time in a long time that she truly felt relaxed.

Her silence was shattered by the sound of the doorbell. Reluctantly she got up from the couch and balancing Lucy on her hip she went to see who it was.

Opening the door she smiled seeing Shawn, Rebecca and Cameron loaded with bags, "hi guys."

Cameron smiled politely, "where's Alex?"

She laughed softly, "in the play room with Uncle Paul."

The little boys eyes widened and he went racing past her towards the play room.

Rebecca shook her head at her sons actions, "I apologise for his behaviour. We come bearing gifts in the way of groceries as Paul said the cupboards were bare."

Stephanie laughed, "don't worry about Cam, he's just excited. Thanks for the groceries though, the cupboards really are bare."

Stepping aside she motioned for them both to enter and once they did she shut the front door and followed them through to the kitchen.

After he placed the shopping bags on the counter Shawn turned to Rebecca and Stephanie, "may I please be excused to join the boys?"

Stephanie laughed, "be my guest."

Rebecca shook her head and shooed him away, "go, let me catch up on the gossip."

He didn't need to be told twice and he quickly left the kitchen leaving the two women alone.

Strapping Lucy into the high chair Stephanie started emptying out the bags quickly joined by Rebecca, "we weren't entirely sure what you normally bought so we bought a little bit of everything to hopefully tide you over until you can do a proper shop yourself."

Stephanie lifted her head and smiled, "it's okay. Thank you for this though, I really appreciate you doing this for me."

Rebecca shrugged, "my pleasure."

Silence fell over them as the two women went about emptying bags and sorting the food out before Rebecca passed the food for Stephanie to put into cupboards.

Once the food was in the cupboards Stephanie made two cups of coffee before they took Lucy into the lounge to relax and gossip.

Sitting on the couch Stephanie crossed her legs before she placed Lucy on her lap quite content and relaxed.

Rebecca had silently been taking Stephanie's demeanour in since she arrived and she couldn't help but notice how relaxed and happy she looked, "okay Steph spill, what happened? You look so . . . so relaxed and happy."

Stephanie laughed and brushed Lucy's hair back with her hand, "charming. I'll be grumpy if you wish."

"Oh you know I don't mean that so don't start with that."

Stephanie nodded, "I know, sorry. I just had a really good nights sleep last night because I felt safe and secure." She neglected to include that the only reason she felt so safe and so secure was because she slept in Paul's arms but Rebecca didn't need to know that.

Rebecca was sceptical of her answer but she couldn't put a finger on why, "so was that because Paul was in the house?"

"Umm sure, I guess."

"So are you going to ask him out?"

Stephanie rolled her eyes before throwing a cushion at Rebecca, "shut up. Just because he makes me feel safe doesn't mean I need to date him."

In the play room Shawn had joined in with the boys games until both he and Paul were eliminated so they had to sit to the side and watch the young ones play. Shawn took this break as his opportunity, "so how did you sleep last night Paul?"

Paul looked at him strangely not entirely sure what was meant by that, "uh I don't really know what you mean."

"It's a simple question, how did you sleep? I mean you're in a strange bed in a strange house."

"He slept with Mommy."

Shawn looked at Alex shocked, "excuse me?"

Alex wasn't sure what he did wrong, "he slept in Mommy's bed."

Shawn looked at Paul, "did you?"

Paul rolled his eyes, "not like that, don't twist the boys words. For reasons you already know I ended up staying in her room to make her feel safer."

Shawn frowned, "not the 'l' word?"

"Yes the 'l' word. He had been watching us during the day and had been in contact."

Shawn ran his hand roughly through his hair, "what are we going to do? This isn't going to be good for her to be alone."

Paul just shrugged, he didn't know what to do or what to say.

The two men were so engrossed in their conversation they failed to see the boys finish playing until they were stood in front of them, "can we get a drink pease?"

Paul lifted his head and plastered on a smile, "of course. Come on and let's go and see what we can find."

Pushing himself up off of the floor he followed the two little boys to the kitchen to get them a drink.

Whilst Paul was getting the boys a drink Shawn decided to make the most of it and use the time to tease Stephanie so he too got up from the floor but he went into the lounge.

Walking into the lounge Shawn flopped onto the couch next to Stephanie and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.

Stephanie looked at Shawn like he was crazy, "you do know your wife is on the other couch right?"

He smirked, "yes, yes I do."

Rebecca looked at her husband, he had that glint in his eye which meant he was going to tease somebody and judging by where he was sat she had a feeling it was going to be Stephanie. Picking up her cup of coffee she sat back on the couch to enjoy whatever he was about to do to her.

Once Paul had poured the drinks he carried the glasses through to the lounge for the boys so the adults could all talk together and keep an eye on the kids.

Shawn cocked his head to the side as he looked at Stephanie, "so how is old Paulie boy in bed then?"

Stephanie looked at him like he had completely lost his mind and Rebecca spat her coffee out in shock.

Paul walked back into the room as Rebecca spat her coffee out, "wow Becca I had no idea Stephanie's coffee was that bad."

Rebecca, Shawn and Stephanie all turned to look at Paul who was stood in the doorway, "what did I say?"

Shawn smirked, "I was just asking Stephanie how you were in bed last night?"

Paul shook his head, "you're a pig, you know that right?"

Rebecca was confused, "wait, what's going on?"

Stephanie glared at Shawn, "remember I said I felt safe and secure last night?"

Rebecca nodded slowly, "yes."

"Well that was only after he came and shared my bed and I fell asleep in his arms. How did you know this Shawn?"

Shawn shuffled down the couch a bit away from her, "Alex told me he slept in your bed, Paul was ever the gentleman and didn't divulge any information so I just thought I would tease you about it."

"Yeah well I would appreciate it if you didn't make jokes about my relationship with Paul."

With that she got up from the couch placing Lucy on Shawn's lap and walked out of the room.


	37. Chapter 37

Paul stood there and watched almost helplessly as Stephanie left the room, he kind of understood why she was so sensitive but he definitely didn't understand why Shawn had made the joke to begin with because he was more than fully aware of everything that had happened with Luke and how fragile she had been since.

Shaking his head he went and placed the boys drinks on the coffee table before he glared at Shawn, "you're a pig you know that right?"

He then turned around and walked out of the room to check on Stephanie.

When Paul left the room Rebecca glared at Shawn, "did you have to say **that** to her?"

Shawn frowned, "I'm sorry."

"It's not me you need to apologise to."

"I know I know."

Shawn then turned his focus to Lucy to avoid any more of an ear bashing from his wife.

When she left the lounge Stephanie head headed straight for the kitchen and pushed the door shut behind her as soon as she entered, she wasn't mad as such at Shawn for making the joke but more frustrated by her inability to vocalise her feelings for Paul to Paul. Resting her elbows on the counter top she just put her head in her hands giving herself a minute to regain her composure.

Seeing the kitchen door pushed too Paul gently knocked on it before pushing it open a crack and sticking his head around it, "can I come in?"

Sighing she reluctantly lifted her head from her hands and turned around to look at him, "knock yourself out."

Walking into the kitchen he pushed the door to behind him again, "I'm sorry about Shawn, he can be such an idiot sometimes."

Laughing softly she shook her head, "he is meant to be your best friend."

"Which gives me every right to call him an idiot. You don't disagree do you?"

"I most certainly do not. You didn't have to check on me you know."

He shrugged, "I was worried about you."

Before she knew what she was saying the words were out of her mouth, "you really care about me don't you?"

He smiled softly at her not fully realising the implications of what he was about to say, "yes I do, a lot."

Silence fell over them with Stephanie too stunned to say anything and Paul not knowing what to say to her now.

After a minute of silence the kitchen door was pushed open and Cameron stuck his head in, "Daddy wants to know if you're going to be mad forever?"

Laughing softly she smirked, "tell him he'll be old and grey by the time he's forgiven."

Cam just nodded and ran off to give his Dad the message.

Paul watched Cam leave before he turned back to her, "I'll go back into the lounge with everyone, join us when you're ready."

He went to leave the room but stopped when he felt a hand on his arm. Turning back around to look at her he couldn't quite read the expression on her face, "is something wrong?"

Opening her mouth with the intention of replying she quickly shut it again not knowing what to actually say.

After a few moments more of silence she moved up onto her tiptoes and pressed soft kiss to his lips, not overly passionate but let it linger briefly.

Pulling back she dropped his arm and chewed on her lip nervously waiting for him to say something but when he didn't say anything immediately she started to panic, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that. Please don't let it affect our working relationship or our friendship as I rea . . ."

Her words were cut off mid-sentence when he pressed his lips against her in a soft and gentle kiss as his hands moved down to her waist holding her.

After a moment where she didn't respond he was about to pull away when he felt her slowly start to respond to the kiss, it wasn't a hot and heavy kiss but just a soft and sweet one.

Only a few moment after she started to respond to the kiss Stephanie pulled away, "we should go back into the lounge with Shawn, Rebecca and the kids."

Paul was shocked by her behaviour, "shouldn't we talk about what just happened?"

"Not now."

With that she went to walk past him to leave the kitchen, she was conflicted within herself now and needed space to sort things out in her mind.

Before she was able to actually leave the room he gently grabbed her arm, "please Steph, can we talk?"

Without turning to look back at him she shook her head, "not now."

Truth be told she was afraid of the conversation the kisses would create because it would either break her heart if he said it was a mistake or it would scare her to think about actually attempting a relationship after everything with Luke, it's not that she hadn't imagined it but that was in her thoughts and her mind and not in the real world.

Dropping his hold on her arm Paul just let her walk out of the room as the last thing he wanted to do was hurt her by forcing her to do something she obviously wasn't ready for.

She left the kitchen and went back into the lounge immediately taking a seat next to Rebecca on the couch not wanting to be near Shawn right now.

As Stephanie walked back into the lounge Rebecca had picked up on her mood and the unshed tears that seemed to be in her eyes and her jaw locked at the thought that Paul might have done something to hurt her.

Turning to look at Stephanie Rebecca frowned, "you okay?"

Silently she nodded not really acknowledging her or looking at her.

Alex immediately picked up on Stephanie's down demeanour and went and climbed into her lap giving her a big hug, "wuv you."

She closed her eyes as she hugged her little boy tightly trying not to let the tears fall.

As Paul walked back into the room he stopped dead seeing Stephanie hugging Alex tightly and his heart dropped to his stomach immediately concerned that he did the wrong thing in the kitchen.

Unbeknownst to both Paul and Stephanie Shawn and Rebecca had watched them both and were now having a war of words with just their eyes with Rebecca begging Shawn to talk to Paul and Shawn begging Rebecca too. Like a lot of times in their marriage Shawn gave in and Rebecca won.

Sighing softly and almost reluctantly Shawn got up from the couch and handed Lucy to Rebecca, "boys do you want to play football?"

Alex's head shot up from Stephanie's chest and Cameron shot up from the floor both excited to play football, "yaaaaay."

Stephanie laughed softly and put Alex on the floor where both he and Cameron immediately ran past Paul who was still in the doorway towards the back door.

Shawn shook his head and patted Paul on the shoulder "come on buddy, you've got to help me with this."

Paul rolled his eyes, "you're the one that suggested it."

Shawn was a bit taken aback by his response as normally he was all up for playing with the kids, "I'm sorry?"

Wearily rubbing his face Paul sighed, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped at you. Let's go."

With a final glance towards Stephanie he turned and walked out of the door to play football with the boys.

When Paul had walked out of the door Shawn looked over at Stephanie and smiled softly, "I am sorry for what I said earlier, I didn't mean to upset you."

He then walked out of the door leaving the two girls alone with Lucy.


	38. Chapter 38

Paul opened the back door and both of the kids ran outside to get the ball to play leaving the two adults trailing behind them.

As Paul walked out of the door with Shawn following behind him Shawn pushed the other man hard on the shoulder, "what the hell did you do to her?"

Paul stumbled as Shawn pushed him, "what the hell was that for?"

Shutting the door behind him Shawn crossed his arms over his chest as he checked on Cameron and Alex who were throwing the ball between them, "because you're an idiot and clearly did something to upset Stephanie and I want to know what it is so I can kill you for it."

"I didn't do anything . . . kind of."

"Kind of? Come on Paul there is more to it than you 'kind of' doing something because she wouldn't have reacted like she did and come into the room in such a down mood if something only 'kind of' happened."

Wearily Paul rubbed his face, "she kissed me."

Shawn's eyes widened in surprise as that was the last thing he expected to hear coming out of Paul's mouth, "why did she look so sad then?"

Paul shrugged, "your guess would be as good as mine. All I know is she kissed me then I kissed her back and when we broke apart I said we needed to talk and she didn't want to and that's about all I know because then she walked off."

"Did you push the kiss?"

"What the hell? Do I look stupid? The pushiest thing I did was put my hands on her waist and I didn't think that would be too bad as it was on top of her clothes and just a gentle touch not a grip."

Frowning Shawn shrugged, "are you sure that is all you did?"

Paul was getting frustrated now, "Shawn! I know her history, I know the deal with Luke, I know how she has been towards me this weekend and I am not stupid enough to actually force myself on her. I really like her Shawn, like **really** like her and the last thing I would knowingly do is push her boundaries too far just because it is something I want."

Shawn knew what Paul was saying right and he honestly didn't think he had done anything but he was a little overprotective sometimes, "I hope Becca can get the truth out of Stephanie then because unless she does and you can find out what you did wrong you're pretty much fucked."

Shoving him hard in the shoulder Paul rolled his eyes, "thanks for that buddy old pal, you're such a source of confidence in my life."

Shawn smirked, "my pleasure. Come on and let's beat these kids so hard they go crying to their Mommy's."

Paul rolled his eyes, "not happening, Steph is already mad at me over something so I'm not giving her another reason to be pissed and giving Rebecca one too as she's scary when she's mad. It's me and Alex against you and Cam and we will win."

Shawn laughed as the two men went over to the boys who were still playing nicely together waiting for the adults to join them.

Back in the lounge Rebecca had sat patiently and waited for Stephanie to open up to her now they were alone but instead she was still sat there silently, "come on Steph you're killing me here, what's going on?"

Stephanie looked over at her friend confused, "what's going on? Nothing is going on?"

"Mmmhmm, I suppose you expect me to still believe in Santa Claus too huh? I wasn't born yesterday, I know something happened between you and Paul in the kitchen because when you walked back into the room you looked like you were about to cry and although you were pissed when you left the room you were far from the about to cry stage."

"I kissed him."

Rebecca squealed at the admission, "you kissed him? . . . Wait, why did you look so upset if you kissed him? Did he not kiss you back?"

"Oh no he kissed me back . . . twice."

Rebecca was even more confused now than before, "then what happened to make you so upset?"

Stephanie sighed heavily, "he wanted to talk about it."

"And that is a bad thing how exactly?"

As she was holding her arms out towards her she lifted Lucy from Rebecca's lap placing her in her own Stephanie closed her eyes briefly before she replied, "what if he wants to talk and say how much of a mistake it was and how he just wants to be friends."

Shaking her head Rebecca couldn't believe how her friend was reacting, "you know I love you and I'm trying to respect your feelings and everything but are you out of your ever loving mind? There is no way on this planet he is going to tell you it was a mistake."

"You don't know that."

"Actually I do, I know Paul and he is head over heels for you so talk to him and actually **listen** to what he says to you, don't hear what you want to hear."

Stephanie was offended by her words, "I do not do that."

Rebecca snorted, "you so do do that. Steph I love you like a sister but when you're scared you shut down and don't actually listen to what is being said."

She knew she was being hard on Stephanie and repeating herself by saying she loved her but she wanted to make sure she knew she was saying this because she cared and not because she wanted to be a bitch towards her.

Stephanie sighed as she played with Lucy's hands, "maybe."

Wanting to try one last time to make sure Stephanie saw sense before she took Cameron and Shawn home and left her alone with Paul Rebecca turned fully to face Stephanie, "look at me please."

Almost reluctantly Stephanie lifted her head and looked Rebecca in the eyes and as soon as she did Rebecca continued, "please don't put Paul in the same category as Luke, he is completely different and every single thing Luke did to you Paul wouldn't dream of doing. The words that come out of Paul's mouth are what he means and you can believe him when he says things and he won't hurt you because if he did he'd have me and Shawn to answer to and he knows it."

Stephanie couldn't help but laugh, "as thankful as I am to you for saying all of that the truth is I'm still scared to put my heart out there in case it gets trampled on."

"If he tramples on it I'll kill him."

Stephanie slapped Rebecca's leg gently, "no you won't, I need my PA."

Rebecca wrapped her arm around Stephanie's shoulder and leant her head against Stephanie's, "it'll be okay, it will all work out for the best but you have to give him a chance first."

Stephanie closed her eyes and sighed softly, "I hope you're right, I really really hope you are."


	39. Chapter 39

Alex came bounding into the lounge from the garden with his trousers covered in mud, "we won Mommy."

Stephanie looked at her little boy and bit back a groan at the state of his trousers, "what did you win? The lottery? I could really use the extra money from a lottery win to put towards my old age pension."

The little boy giggled, "no silly, football. Me and Paul won."

She smiled as Paul came in behind Alex, "didn't I tell you to take your shoes off Alex?"

Turning to look up at the older man he pouted, "but I was 'cited, I wanted to tell Mommy."

Shaking his head Paul pointed to the door, "take your shoes off and go and put them by the back door please so Shawn can clean them up."

Realising what he was doing Paul frowned and turned to Stephanie, "sorry, it's not really my business to tell him to do that is it?"

She couldn't help but smile softly as he was acting so cute, "no it's okay, you're right to tell him to do it as if you gave him instructions and he didn't follow them when you were in charge then you are right to enforce those instructions and I support you."

Rebecca pushed herself up from the sofa breaking the little stare they had going on, "I am going to retrieve my husband and son and we will get out of your hair."

"Make sure Shawn cleans all of the shoes first, he lost and that is his punishment."

Rebecca laughed at Paul and shook her head, "don't worry, I'll make sure he cleans all of the shoes before we leave."

With that she walked past him out of the room leaving the two of them alone.

Once Rebecca had left the room Paul went and sat next to Stephanie on the couch stroking Lucy's head, "she really likes you."

Lifting her head she smiled and looked deep into his eyes, "I really like her too." Her voice dropped so low that it was barely audible as she said, "and her Father too."

He wasn't sure he had heard her correctly, "what did you say?"

Shaking her head she was quick to dismiss it, "doesn't matter." After a brief silent pause she took a deep breath, "can we talk after Shawn and Rebecca are gone please?"

"Of course, you know I wanted to when we were in the kitchen. I'm sorry I tried to push you."

Shaking her head she put her finger up to silence him, "not now, when we're alone."

He just nodded his understanding before he leaned forward and pressed a kiss to the top of Lucy's head and went to check on how Shawn was progressing with the shoes.

When Paul walked into the kitchen he saw that the kids were nowhere around it was just the adults and they were obviously talking as hushed whispers could be heard. As he took a few silent steps closer he caught the words 'she's scared' but his presence was noticed and Rebecca spun around to face him, "Paul."

He nodded, "that would be me. What were you talking about?"

"Nothing, nothing that concerns you anyway."

He frowned, "yeah whatever. I came to check on how Shawn is doing."

Shawn smirked, "nearly done, it wasn't that hard after all."

Paul laughed, "I knew it wasn't hard, I just knew it would be messy."

Playfully Shawn glared at him before throwing the final shoe down, "Ha! I am done and not a mess in sight."

Rebecca rolled her eyes, "have you looked at your hands? You look like you've been making mud pies. How did you boys end up getting your shoes so dirty to begin with?"

Both men shrugged, "bad luck?"

"Well whatever it was Shawn wash your hands and then get your shoes on, we are going home."

Shawn knew better than to argue with his wife so he got up to wash his hands as she went off in search of Cameron to get him to put his shoes on.

Ten minutes later and everybody was at the front door saying their goodbyes and Rebecca was sneaking in another quick cuddle with Lucy.

Reluctantly she passed Lucy back to Paul before she hugged him gently, "you take care of this little one." Turning her head she whispered in his ear, "and take care of Stephanie too or you will have me to answer to."

Paul smiled as Rebecca pulled away and then turned to Stephanie and hugged her tightly whispering in her ear, "talk to him or I will do it for you."

Stephanie shook her head as Rebecca pulled away, "just go before I kick you out."

Shawn grabbed his wife's arm, "don't worry we're going."

All three of them headed out of the door as Alex, Stephanie, Paul and Lucy stood in the doorway and watched them climb into the car before they headed out.

Once their car was no longer in view Stephanie looked at her watch "okay it's lunchtime. Alex why don't you go and watch some TV quietly whilst I make your lunch."

Alex nodded his head before obediently running off into the lounge to sit quietly.

Stephanie walked through to the kitchen without saying a word to Paul as her stomach was tied in knots and she felt nauseous at the conversation they were going to eventually have.

Paul followed Stephanie, he needed to get some lunch for Lucy too.

When he had strapped Lucy into the high chair he turned to look at Stephanie who was buttering some bread, "when do you want to talk? I don't mean to push you but I need to know."

"When Alex is eating, I'll let him eat in the lounge and we can talk in private in here."

He nodded and set about making Lucy's lunch.

Once the food was made he sat down and started to feed her as Stephanie finished Alex's lunch and took it into him in the lounge.

When she returned to the kitchen Stephanie pushed the door to before taking a seat across from him at the table waiting for him to finish feeding Lucy.

As soon as he had fed Lucy and washed her face Paul turned his full attention to the woman sat across from him, "so what did you want to talk about?"

Clasping her hands together nervously in her lap she chewed on her lip, "the kiss."

He was quick to correct her, "kisses."

She blushed and looked down at the table, "yeah, the kisses. You see I don't know what came over me, I don't normally act like that."

"I had noticed that. I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable, it wasn't my intention."

Shaking her head she was quick to dismiss the apology, "there is no need for you to apologise, I instigated it so I should apologise."

His face fell hearing her say those words, did she regret what happened between them? Sighing gently he wanted to put her mind at ease, "don't apologise, really there is no need. We are both grown adults and these things happen and I'm sure it won't change our friendship."

She gulped, "our friendship, yeah our friendship. I'd better check on Alex."

Quickly getting up from her seat she went to walk past him and out of the room to go to the bathroom to cry alone but before she could leave he grabbed her arm, "Stephanie."

Stopping she kept her eyes locked on the door in front of her, "I'll just be a minute."

He knew she was upset, he just didn't know why and he wanted to know, "no not yet. Please look at me."

Squeezing her eyes shut to stop the tears from falling she whispered, "I can't."

Getting up from his seat he gently turned her around so she was facing him but she kept her head turned away so gently he gripped her chin whilst still holding onto her arm and turned her face to look at him and his heart broke seeing the look in her eyes and the unshed tears there, "why are you so sad?"

Rapidly blinking to try and clear her vision she tried to think of a plausible excuse, "I'm just tired."

A stray tear trickled down her cheek and Paul quickly wiped it away with his thumb watching as her face tilted leaning into his touch. His voice dropped to a soft whisper as his face drew a little closer to hers, "I don't believe you, you slept like a log. Tell me the truth please, I want to take your pain away."

Their noses were almost touching their faces were so close to each other and she could feel his breath dancing on her skin, "if you really want to take my pain away then kiss me again please."

Tilting his head to the side a little he captured her lips in a soft kiss closing his eyes relishing the feeling of her soft lips on his.

Pulling back from the kiss after a minute he stepped back giving her some space which immediately sent Stephanie into a panic, "you don't want this do you? You just did that because I asked you to didn't you?"

Violently he shook his head quick to set her straight, "I absolutely did not. I kissed you because I wanted to, I kissed you because I really **really** like you and when you said it would take your pain away I did it for selfish reasons as I don't know how you feel about me so wanted to take the opportunity to feel your lips on mine one last time in case you just wanted to be friends. I stepped back to give you space because I didn't want to crowd you and make you uncomfortable."

Stephanie placed her finger against his lips, "you talk far too much sometimes."

"And you talk far too little sometimes letting my mind wander and come up with all of these crazy things."

She laughed softly before reaching for both of his hands taking them in hers playing with his fingers nervously, "so if I said I would like to be your girlfriend what would you say?"

"Hmmm, I don't know."

He pretended to think about it all the while having a twinkle in his eye causing her to drop his one hand and slap his chest gently, "meanie."

Gripping her fingers back gently and pulling her towards him he loosely wrapped his arms around her waist giving her space and the opportunity to pull away if she wanted, "I would say that I would be honoured if you would be my girlfriend."

Smiling brightly she leant up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek before she wrapped her arms tightly around his waist resting her head on his chest and closing her eyes breathing in his scent feeling safe and truly happy for the first time in a long time.


	40. Chapter 40

Stephanie stayed cuddled close to Paul breathing in his scent for a few minutes letting it all sink in, "I can't believe we're together."

He chuckled dropping a kiss into her hair, "me either. I genuinely thought you didn't see me like this but I am so glad you do."

Lifting her head from his chest she looked up at him and smiled softly, "you hungry?"

"I guess."

Pulling away from him she went over to the counter to make them both a sandwich. As she silently worked on the sandwiches her mind drifted to how their relationship would actually work because they worked hard Monday to Friday, they had a child each and he was currently living with his parents.

Paul had noticed how her shoulders seemed to have fallen and she looked dejected from what he could see so walking over to her he placed his hand on her shoulder, "what's on your mind?"

"Nothing."

Shaking his head he removed the knife from her hand placing it down before he turned her to face him, "now tell me the truth please."

Staring at the floor to avoid his gaze she sighed, "how are we going to make this work? You've got Lucy, I've got Alex and you're currently living with your parents. How can we possibly make a relationship work when we work on top of all of that?"

Lifting her gaze from the floor to look into his eyes she saw a look of determination but it didn't quell her fears, "Paul it's impossible, we have to be crazy to even attempt it."

He couldn't help but smile despite the seriousness of what she was saying, "you're cute when you're being all practical but really you have no reason to worry because we will make this work. We can make our lunch hour a 'date' and we can hang out all weekend and I'm sure every now and again our parents wouldn't mind watching the kids for the evening or the day just so we can have some alone time together. We will make this work if we **want** it to work, if we think from the outset it won't work then there is no point attempting it as it will fail."

Stephanie bit her lip to stop a smile erupting on her face, she felt more confident about it hearing him talking about making it work, "there is one thing we've not mentioned and that is telling people about us. I don't think I'm ready to tell people I'm in a relationship, not because I'm ashamed of you or anything but because I want it to be our thing, I don't want people sticking their noses in."

Paul couldn't help but smirk, "you mean we get to pretend to Shawn that nothing is going on between us?"

Slowly she nodded not sure why he was so happy, "just for the time being. Why are you so happy about that thought?"

"Because it will be fun to tease Shawn about it because I know he will blow his top as he really really **really** wants us to get together."

She slapped his arm gently, "bad boy, you are a very bad boy."

He laughed wiggling his eyebrows at her, "and don't you forget it."

Before Stephanie could respond Alex pushed the door open, "Mommy pate."

Smiling she took the plate from him, "good boy. You can go back and watch cartoons for a bit whilst we eat if you want?"

Alex nodded toddling off back to the lounge.

Once Alex was safely out of earshot Paul turned to Stephanie with a serious look on his face, "what do we do about Alex? I mean do you want to keep the displays of affection away from him and not tell him we're together until things are more serious?"

"I think that would be best, I don't want to confuse him. Don't get me wrong you can still be around him and hang out with me when he's around but we just keep our relationship on the down low."

Giving her a quick kiss on the lips he smiled softly, "not a problem."

Sitting down he allowed Stephanie to finish making the sandwiches before she joined him at the table and they ate.

Once they had both polished off their sandwiches Paul took Lucy upstairs and lay her down for a nap before they headed home to allow Stephanie some time alone with Alex.

Whilst Lucy was napping Paul took the opportunity to pack his thing and most of hers and to make the guest room tidy again even if he hadn't spent much time in it.

As soon as everything was tidy he headed back downstairs laughing when he heard Stephanie's shouts of 'cheat' from the lounge.

Walking into the lounge he leant against the wall upon seeing Stephanie with Alex laying in her lap and her tickling him as he kicked and squirmed madly.

Lifting her head she smiled seeing him stood there and stopped teasing Alex, "everything okay?"

"Everything's fine thanks, she dropped off pretty quickly and I just did some packing and tidying so when she wakes up we can get out of your hair."

"You don't have to hurry to leave."

He shook his head, "no I want to, give you two some time alone together."

Paul then sat down on the floor joining the two in their game.

When Lucy woke up Paul went to get her taking her back downstairs before sitting on the couch with her in his lap, "I should have taken the bags to the car whilst she was sleeping."

Stephanie giggled, "yeah but you were too busy playing games with us."

Playfully he glared at her, "yeah I wonder whose fault that is?"

"Not mine."

He laughed at her trying to play Miss Innocent, "well for that you can watch her whilst I take the bags to the car."

"Oh gee, what a hardship that will be Paul, I mean cuddling an adorable little girl is so terrible."

Rolling his eyes he placed Lucy in her arms before he went and retrieved the bags from upstairs and took them out to the car loading them all in before he went back inside and took Lucy's car seat into the lounge and placed it on the floor.

Wordlessly Stephanie turned and started to buckle Lucy into her car seat, as much as she didn't want to see him go she knew she couldn't stop him.

Once Lucy was safely in her car she stood up, "I'll walk you to the door. Alex do you want to come and say goodbye?"

Alex quickly jumped up from the couch and ran over clinging to Paul's leg, "no go."

Putting the car seat back on the floor Paul knelt down at the little boys level, "it's okay Alex, I will be back to see you really soon."

Alex clung to his neck, "no go."

Rubbing his back gently Paul hugged him, "listen to me Alex, I promise you with everything that I am that I will be back to see you soon."

Reluctantly the little boy pulled back from his neck a little and looked at him, "pwomise?"

Paul nodded, "pinky promise."

He then put his hand up with his little finger sticking out and waited as the little boy did the same and he joined their little fingers together, "pinky promise."

Dropping his hand Alex then turned to his Mom and lifted his arms up to be picked up which she did balancing him on her hip as Paul picked up the car seat and she walked him to the door.

As Paul stepped out of the front door he turned around smiling softly at Stephanie and Alex who now had his head resting on her shoulder, "I will see you at work tomorrow okay?"

She smiled and nodded, "and you'd better not be late."

He laughed quickly placing the car seat on the floor before giving her a quick hug resisting the urge to give her a kiss too, "I promise I will be on time. Bye you two."

Picking the car seat back up he reluctantly walked to his car unlocking it and setting about strapping Lucy's car seat in.

Once he was safely in the car he walked around to the drivers side taking his phone out of his pocket as he climbed into the car and quickly wrote out a text:

_Heading home now if you want to meet us there._

He quickly sent the text to Kara before starting the car and taking off waving to Stephanie and Alex as he reached the end of the driveway before he pulled out onto the road.

As soon as Paul had pulled out of the driveway Stephanie shut the front door locking it before taking Alex upstairs to lay him down for a nap as he was very sleepy.

What neither Paul nor Stephanie had seen was Luke lurking in the shadows watching them as Paul said his goodbyes and left leaving him to plot his next move.


	41. Chapter 41

When Paul pulled into the driveway at home he laughed softly to himself seeing Kara sat in her car outside of the house waiting for him.

Shutting off the engine to the car before opening the drivers door and climbing out he spun around to see Kara already at the passenger door opening it, "were you sat out here stalking my parents house waiting for us to return?"

Rolling her eyes as she unbuckled Lucy's carrier before picking it up and standing up straight, "don't flatter yourself. I was out dropping something off at a friends when I got your text so came straight over and I just happened to get here before you."

He pouted, "you're so mean to me."

"Shut up drama queen and let us in the house so I can have some quality time with my honorary niece."

Laughing he walked around the car to the front door, "my Mum wasn't well yesterday when we left so be quiet when you go in in case she's asleep and I'll get the bags."

Kara just nodded as he unlocked the door and pushed it open allowing her to tiptoe in and to the lounge. It was hard for her not to notice his obvious good mood and overall cheery disposition and she wondered what had caused it.

Unbuckling Lucy from the carrier she gently picked her up before sitting her on her lap and carefully removing her coat but jumped when she heard, "oh he's back."

Turning her head to look at Paul's Mom she smiled politely, "hi Mrs Levesque. Paul said you weren't well yesterday so we were being very quiet in case you were sleeping."

Walking in and sitting on the chair Patricia smiled, "it's okay dear, I just didn't hear him come back."

Just then Paul walked into the lounge and smiled at his Mom, "how are you feeling?"

Patricia looked up at her son, "much better thank you, your Dad actually took very good care of me. How are you? How is Stephanie?"

He couldn't help the smile the appeared on his face at the mention of her name, "she's fine, Alex is fine. There was a small hiccup relating to the ex but we got past that and had a good time."

Patricia looked at Kara and Kara looked back at her both exchanging a knowing look that something good had happened but Patricia knew she wouldn't get her son to open up to her as he hadn't immediately, "well I am going to go and start on dinner. Would you like to stay Kara?"

Stunned but happy Kara nodded, "I'd like that, thank you Mrs Levesque."

Shaking her head Patricia stood up, "call me Patricia please, Mrs Levesque is so formal."

With that she walked out of the room leaving Kara to get the gossip for her.

Once Patricia had left the room Kara looked at Paul shocked, "wow, she was actually really nice to me. I think your Mom might finally be forgiving me for breaking your heart all of those years ago."

Sitting down in the chair his Mom had recently vacated he sighed happily, "I think she might be."

Setting Lucy on the floor beside her she looked at him properly, "so what **really** happened this weekend Paul?"

"Nothing."

Raising her eyebrow she shook her head, "I don't believe you, you're happy and smiley and everything you haven't been in about seven months since before Sarah left."

Shifting from the seat to the floor he moved closer to her, "if I tell you you can't tell a soul. You will have to swear on your life that you won't tell anyone."

"I . . . I don't know Paul, you're kind of making it sound like you killed someone."

He couldn't help but laugh at her dramatisation of things, "it's not **that** bad I promise."

"Okay, I swear on my life that I won't tell anybody."

Pulling his knee to his chest he rested his chin on the top of it, "me and Steph are together."

Kara squealed half in surprise and half in delight, "oh my God are you serious?"

Shaking his head he rubbed Lucy's back gently as she had gotten spooked by Kara, "yes I'm serious. We kissed earlier and we're going to try the whole dating thing but she wants to keep things quiet and on the down low for a while."

"I can't believe you two managed to get your act together, what triggered it?"

He shrugged, "nothing big happened, I was just there for her when she was at her most freaked out and I was kind and gentle with her and we just fell for each other and finally acknowledged it properly today."

"I'm so happy for you Paul, I really hope it works out between you two."

"I do too but you can't tell anyone."

She laughed at him, "relax, I already said I wouldn't and I won't, you can rely on me to keep things quiet."

Smiling he picked up Lucy, "thank you."

He cuddled his daughter close for a minute before setting her back on the floor allowing her to crawl over to Kara letting Kara spend as much time with Lucy as she could.

Whilst Alex was asleep Stephanie tidied up downstairs, whilst doing so her mind drifted to Paul and she couldn't help but smile, she couldn't believe that they were actually together and he felt the same for her as she felt for him.

After just over an hour Alex woke up and toddled down the stairs to Stephanie as she'd forgotten to shut the stair gate at the top of the stairs.

When he got downstairs he went in search of her finding her in the kitchen, "Mommy up?"

Spinning around she was shocked to see her son stood there, "Alex, what are you doing down here?"

"Stairs Mommy. Up?"

Scooping the little boy up she kissed the top of his head, "Mommy loves you."

Alex cuddled close to Stephanie as he woke up properly from his nap.

Once he was fully awake he lifted his head and pouted, "miss Uncle Paul."

Sighing softly she briefly closed her eyes, "I miss him too baby boy. He'll be around again soon I'm sure."

"'Morrow?"

Shaking her head she chuckled, "tomorrow we have to both work, I'm sure it'll be soon though."

He pouted before wriggling out of her arms and running off to the play room to play not happy with her answer.

Once Alex had run off she sat down and sighed, she hadn't realised exactly how attached to Paul he had become, she thought his display when Paul had left was just because he was tired but apparently not.

She wasn't sure how she felt about Alex being so attached to Paul because she was worried if it didn't work out between them he would get his little heart broken and that was the last thing she wanted which gave her irrational doubts about giving their relationship a go.

When Patricia called Kara and Paul for dinner they practically argued over who was going to feed Lucy with Paul relenting allowing Kara to do it if it would make her happy.

Settling Lucy in her high chair Paul got Lucy's dinner placing it by Kara so she could feed Lucy as he sat the opposite side of Lucy so he could take over if necessary.

Once Patricia had set the dinner on the table she allowed a moment of silence before she turned to Paul, "so what did you and Stephanie do?"

He groaned, "Mom, don't give me the third degree over this."

Putting her hands up in defence she gave him an innocent look, "I'm only asking the question out of curiosity, there is nothing to it."

Beneath the table Kara kicked Paul giving him a pointed look also to warn him to relax or his Mom would get rightly suspicious.

Sighing in defeat he looked at his Mom, "we just hung out with the kids with me spending a fair bit of time with Alex whilst Steph put everything away."

Patricia nodded, "I see. So are you going to spend a lot of time with Alex?"

He shrugged, "I don't know, that's up to Stephanie. He is an adorable little boy though and I do enjoy spending time with him just like I enjoy spending time with Cameron so if she doesn't mind me spending time with him and thinks it is beneficial for Alex then I will do so."

She was proud of her son, he was so mature and level headed about things, "and if Stephanie wanted you to spend more time with her?"

He frowned, "I'll cross the bridge if and when I come to it I guess. Do we have to talk about this now?"

Paul Snr. cut in, "I think he's right Patricia, leave the poor boy alone."

Patricia just kept quiet not wanting to start an argument with a guest in the house.

Once everyone had finished their dinner it was time for Lucy's bath and bed so Kara carried her upstairs closely watched by Paul.

After she had bathed Lucy and let Paul put her to bed Kara knew it was time to leave, "well I'd better go. I'll see you again soon though Paul right?"

He smiled and nodded as he walked her downstairs tot he door, "now my Mom seems to like you again you may come over whenever you like."

When they reached the front door they hugged, "take care Kara."

She smiled and pulled back a little, "I will, you take care too and take care of that little one."

"I will, she is my main priority in life."

"Maybe so Paul but don't let that be to the detriment of you know who. You need to compromise sometimes and if you ever need a babysitter you know where I am, I will be happy to watch her if the two of you want some alone time and you don't want your parents knowing."

Hugging her again he smiled brightly, "thank you, you are the best."

Pulling back she smirked, "I know I am, no need to tell me that."

Rolling his eyes he opened the front door, "out! Get out before I throw you out."

Laughing she walked out of the door, "I love you too."

He leant against the door as he watched her walk to her car waiting until she had safely pulled away before he shut the door, his life was looking up and he couldn't be happier.


	42. Chapter 42

Monday morning arrived and Paul couldn't wait to get to work so he could see his girlfriend, just the thought brought a smile to his face.

Whistling as he moved around the kitchen preparing Lucy's breakfast as well as his own it caused a raised eyebrow from his Mom as she walked into the kitchen, "you're cheerful this morning son."

Paul smiled as he spun around to face her, "life is good. I'm happy and I'm loving my job things couldn't get any better."

Patricia laughed, "whatever you say son. Will you be late tonight?"

"I shouldn't think so, I should imagine Steph will want to get home to Alex."

She nodded understanding, "okay well if you will be extra late let me know and I'll bathe Lucy for you."

"Thanks Mom."

Placing the plates on the table he went and sat down and started to feed Lucy.

Across town Stephanie was cooking Alex's breakfast but she got distracted and ending up burning the toast, "dammit."

Throwing the toast into the sink she put a couple more pieces into the toaster turning the toaster down hoping these cooked right.

Sighing with relief as the toast popped up and it was edible she quickly buttered it before putting it on the table in front of Alex, "eat up and I'll be back now."

Running out of the kitchen she headed upstairs to finish getting dressed and to get her stuff together.

Once she was ready and once Alex had eaten she led him out of the house to drop him off at her parents before work.

As she opened her parents front door and Alex ran inside she found herself transported back to the weekend and a sigh passed her lips.

Linda walked out of the lounge frowning at Stephanie, "you okay?"

Sighing heavily Stephanie looked at her Mom forcing a smile, "yeah I'm fine."

"Mmmhmm. How was the weekend?"

"Yeah it was fine Mom. The good was great but the bad was pretty terrible."

Linda frowned with concern now, "there were bad parts?"

Running a hand through her hair Stephanie nodded, "yeah. It was nothing Paul did or anything but it was just some mental roadblocks I had to overcome. I've got to get going to the office though so I'll see you tonight."

Giving her Mom a quick hug she hurried out of the door before she could question her further.

Walking into the office Stephanie gulped seeing Paul already there, "you're early."

Lifting his head Paul smiled at her getting up from his chair, "yes I am, I wanted to see you before work."

Walking closer to her he frowned when she took a step back, "Steph?"

She shook her head, "not now Paul."

With that she walked past him into her office and shut the door.

Staring at her closed office door he was confused, last time he had seen her they were okay and now she was ignoring him. Resigning himself to having to wait until lunchtime or after work to find out what was going on he went back to his desk and sat down to get on with his work.

Lunchtime arrived which was signalled by Shawn bounding into the office, "Paulie, Paulie, Paulie."

Paul looked up and groaned, "not you."

Shawn laughed, "charming. I love you too."

"I'm sorry Shawn, I didn't mean to be rude."

Seeing that something was bothering his friend he pulled out a seat and sat down, "okay, what's wrong?"

Frowning Paul leant back in his seat, "I think she's mad at me but I don't know why."

"Have you asked her?"

Groaning Paul wanted to throw something at Shawn, "thank you for the suggestion Captain Obvious. I tried but she walked into her office and shut the door and hasn't been seen from since."

Shawn was never one to be deterred by Stephanie's moods so he pushed himself up from the chair and went and barged into her office, he wasn't one for manners sometimes either.

Stephanie lifted her head from her work hearing the door be barged open and frowned seeing Shawn stood there, "don't you knock?"

Shrugging he walked over and took a seat, "sometimes but it's lunchtime so you should be having a break so I shouldn't be interrupting."

Rolling her eyes she dropped her pen onto her desk, "well with you sat there I'm not going to get any work done am I? What do you want? Why aren't you annoying Paul?"

"I was but he said you were mad at him so I came to see what was wrong."

Rubbing her temples she didn't want to be dealing with this now, "it's got nothing to do with you but I'm not mad at him. Go and get us all some lunch and I'll talk to him."

Laughing Shawn got up from his seat, "you have yourself a deal."

With that he turned around and walked out of the office, "your boss will talk to you now Paul."

Paul watched in confusion as Shawn walked out of the office but got up from his desk and walked into Stephanie's office, "you'll talk to me now huh?"

Stephanie frowned, "I'm sorry about earlier, I just had a lot on my mind."

"A lot on your mind like what?"

She was scared to open up to him but she knew if she didn't then she would never get anywhere, "fears about our future. Paul, Alex really adores you and I don't want to see his heart get broken if we don't work out."

Walking around the desk he spun her chair around to face him before he knelt in front of her, "I swear on whatever you want me to swear on that even if we don't work out I won't abandon Alex. I'd like to hope that even if we don't work out we could remain friends and as such I would like to hope we could hang out together because I would love to continue spending time with Alex no matter what, he deserves a Father figure in his life. Don't get me wrong I'm not saying I should be that person but I would be honoured if I was that person."

Crossing her arms over her chest almost in anger she stared at him, "how do you know what to say to make everything better?"

He sniggered, "I have magic powers? Seriously though Steph, I'm not saying anything I think you want to hear, I am saying what is in my heart and what I feel."

Pushing her chair back she slid off of it and got onto her knees on the floor gently taking Paul's hands in her own, "thank you."

"For what?"

"For being you Paul, for always knowing the right thing to say to make me feel better."

He couldn't help the smile that graced his lips, "you're welcome, it is my pleasure. You know what you could do to make it up to me don't you?"

Tilting her head to the side she looked at him oddly, "no."

"Kiss me."

Laughing she shook her head, "you're too much. We'd better make it quick though before Shawn returns."

"Oh I can make it quick alright."

With that he pulled her closer wrapping his arms around her waist and kissed her softly, he'd wanted to do this all morning and was so glad he was getting the opportunity.

No sooner had their lips touched did they hear Shawn whistling as he came down the corridor. Springing apart quickly they stood up and straightened out their clothes just as Shawn walked in, "did I interrupt anything?"

Stephanie was quick to deny it, "nope, nothing. Why would you be interrupting anything? What would there be to interrupt?"

Shawn looked at her oddly, "okay okay, just relax. I only asked the question as you both look a little flushed."

"I'm not flushed, I'm fine."

Tossing the sandwiches onto her desk Shawn grabbed a chair, "just take your pick of the sandwiches."

Stephanie just grabbed the nearest sandwich and sat down tearing it open and tucking in.

Paul got a sandwich himself before sitting down and quietly tucked it.

Shawn watched between them as he opened up his sandwich, "what happened after we left yesterday? Did anything interesting happen?"

Both of them at once replied, "no!"

Shawn looked at them like they were crazy, "I only asked a question, no need to bite my head off."

Lunch was eaten in silence before Shawn made a fast exit not really understanding what had happened between Stephanie and Paul but not wanting to stay in there a minute longer.

Once Shawn had left Stephanie looked at Paul, "I'm sorry."

He smiled softly, "it's okay, there is no need for you to be sorry. We can just pick up where we left off after work."

Laughing softly she pointed to the door, "out."

Standing up he laughed and headed out of the door.

The rest of the afternoon passed quickly and soon it was the end of the day. Looking at the clock she chewed her lip nervously as she got up from her seat and leaned against the door frame of her office, "Paul, do you want to come in here a minute please?"

Paul frowned and got up from his seat and followed her into her office, all he could do was watch as she shut the door behind him, "what's going on Steph?"

Perching on the edge of her desk she smiled softly, "I thought you wanted to pick up where we left off earlier. You don't have to though."

Walking closer he smiled, "oh no I'd like to, I'd like to a lot."

He took her hands and pulled her up and closer to him and placed his hands on her hips before their heads moved closer and they kissed softly.

The kisses weren't overly passionate just soft and gentle as they explored the feelings of their lips together.

After a few minutes of kissing Paul pulled back from the kiss but left his forehead touching hers, "that was really nice, thank you."

Stephanie bit down on her lip shyly, "I agree. I'd better head home and pick up Alex and get him food and ready for bed."

He smiled taking a step back, "I'd better get home to Lucy too. I might call you later just because I can, depends on how well Lucy goes down."

Giggling she shook her head, "you're too cute. I'll speak to you later or I'll see you tomorrow. Night Paul."

With that she grabbed her coat and bag and headed out but not before she kissed his cheek.

Paul stood there with a silly grin on his face, he'd never felt this happy in his life.

Driving to her parents Stephanie picked Alex up before she headed home. Opening the front door she smiled as she walked inside, it felt good to be returning to her own home.

As she opened the front door Alex ran inside to the playroom whilst she went and made a start on dinner.

Just as she was about to dish dinner up there was a knock on the door. Groaning in frustration at somebody's terrible timing she left the dinner and went and opened the door to see who was there.

"Hello Stephanie, long time no see."


	43. Chapter 43

Stephanie sighed as she pulled the door open.

"Hello Stephanie, long time no see."

Her eyes widened in shock and she immediately tried slamming the door but it didn't close all of the way as he put his foot in the way to stop it, "what do you want Luke?"

"I only want to talk to you. Is that a crime?"

"When you were sent to jail for beating me up I'd say it was yeah."

Luke frowned, "but it was an accident, I didn't mean to hurt you."

She looked at him incredulously, "an **accident**? Is that what you call it these days?

He reached for her arm but she quickly snatched it away, "Steph I just want to make it all better between us and to move on."

Shaking her head she pushed on the door, "move your foot."

"Steph come on, please talk to me."

Before she had chance to respond from behind her Stephanie heard, "Mommy I'm hungwy."

Sighing softly she rested her forehead on the door briefly, "go back to the playroom please, I will have dinner ready in one minute baby."

Alex seemed satisfied with the answer and went back into the playroom allowing Stephanie to turn her attention back to Luke, "can you please leave? I need to get my son his dinner."

"We need to talk though, straighten things out so we can move on together. I meant what I said, I will treat the kids like they're my own."

"I don't **want** to move on with you Luke. We're done, through, over, finished, kaput, no more, ancient history."

Luke shook his head, "I'm not giving up on you Stephanie, I know I've got a lot of work to do to get you to trust me again but I won't give up."

With that he turned around and walked away.

As soon as he had moved his foot she slammed the front door shut locking it before speed walking into the lounge shutting the curtains before leaning against the wall slowly sinking to the floor pulling her knees to her chest and burying her face in them as a few tears slid down her cheeks.

Paul had walked into the house making a beeline for the kitchen having made it home in record time and smiled seeing Lucy in her high chair and his Mom about to feed her, "don't worry about that, let me."

Patricia lifted her head to see her son stood there with a smile on his face, "be my guest. Good day at work?"

He nodded as he shrugged off his jacket and took a seat, "it wasn't bad thanks, it was nice and quiet for the most part which was easy to handle."

"Uh huh. How's Stephanie?"

"Steph's good."

Patricia looked at her husband and raised her eyebrow, something was different about him but she couldn't put a finger on it, "I'll start cooking dinner now if you want or if you'd rather wait until Lucy is bathed I can do that too."

Paul shook his head, "no now is good thanks, I'm starving."

She laughed as she started on dinner as he fed Lucy.

Having finished feeding Lucy he was cleaning her face up when he had a bad feeling appear in the pit of his stomach, something was wrong but he wasn't sure what it was.

Paul Sr noticed the change in his son, "everything alright son?"

Paul looked over at his Dad and frowned, "I don't know. Do you ever get the feeling that something is wrong but you just don't know what it is?"

"A few times yes and when I do I can't relax until I check up on whatever or whomever is the source of the bad feeling so maybe you should do the same?"

Paul sat there contemplating whether to or not as he felt like he was overreacting but before he knew it the house phone was presented to him by his Father, "call them, it will make you feel better."

Sighing softly he slowly keyed in the number to Stephanie's home phone before lifting the phone to his ear and listened to it as it rang out.

As she sat in the living room Stephanie was acutely aware of the home phone ringing but as far as she was concerned it could ring and ring and ring because she was not answering it, she couldn't speak to Luke again.

Paul listened to the phone continue to ring out without an answering phone kicking in or her picking up, "she's not answering."

His Dad frowned, "who's not answering?"

"Steph, she's not answering."

Shaking his head his Dad was quick to reassure him, "maybe she's feeding Alex, give her a minute."

A minute passed and there was still no answer, "nothing Dad. I'm really worried now."

Alex had been playing in the playroom but had heard the phone ringing so he got up from his spot on the floor to find his Mom too make it stop. As he walked into the foyer she was nowhere around so he went into the lounge but he couldn't see her in there either as she was hidden by the couch so he tried the kitchen but nothing.

Having explored all possible options to find her he did the only thing he could do and went to pick it up himself, his Mom had taught him how to pick up the phone and dial 911 in case of an emergency so he thought he knew what button to push. Knocking the phone from the cradle as he went to pick it up he took it from the floor with both hands and pressed a button before lifting it to his ear, "hewwo?"

Paul was just about to give up when the phone stopped ringing and he heard a voice but it was soft and gentle and definitely not Stephanie's, "Alex?"

Alex heard his name by the person on the other end of the phone but he didn't recognise the voice, "yes?"

"Alex it's Paul. Where's your Mommy?"

Excited to hear his voice Alex squealed, "Paul! Mommy's gone."

Paul's eyes widened with alarm, "she's gone? What do you mean she's gone Alex?"

"I can't finds her Paul."

Paul felt his heart drop as his parents eyes both seemed trained on him, "where did you last see her? Maybe she's using the bathroom?"

Alex frowned a she stood there holding the phone to his ear, "Mommy was talking to a man at the door."

Muttering, "shit, shit, shit." Paul quickly pushed his chair back and reached for his jacket with his free hand, "I'm going to come over Alex. Do you remember my Mom?"

"She gave me candy."

Laughing softly Paul couldn't help but smile, "that's right she did. I'm going to put my Mom on the phone and I want you to keep talking to her until I get there okay?"

"Kay."

Paul looked at his Mom and mouthed, "keep him talking."

Patricia nodded and took the phone from her son mouthing back, "go." She then put the phone to her ear, "hello Alex."

Paul Sr patted his son on the shoulder, "I'll take care of Lucy and bathe her and put her to bed, you just take care of Stephanie and her little boy."

Paul nodded, "thanks Dad." He rushed out of the door grabbing his car keys as he went.


	44. Chapter 44

Paul broke every speed limit and most rules of the road in his rush to cross town to get to Alex and Stephanie, it was only by luck that he didn't get himself pulled over by the Police.

The tires of his car screeched to a halt as he pulled up outside her house and he wasted no time getting out of his car and racing to the door.

Upon reaching the door the first thing he tried was just turning the handle to see if it was unlocked but it wasn't so he started knocking repeatedly on the door.

Stephanie heard the knocking at the door but she didn't move to answer it because she didn't want to come face to face with Luke again.

Having spent fifteen minutes talking to Alex and trying to keep him calm and distracted Patricia was relieved to hear knocking on the door in the background, "Alex, why don't you go and see who's at the door?"

"Kay."

Alex took a few steps towards the front door, "who's there?"

Paul sighed with relief hearing Alex's voice, "Alex it's Paul, let me in please."

Alex dropped the phone to the floor and with both hands attempted to turn the lock on the front door and after a minute of trying the click of the lock could be heard reverberating around the foyer.

As soon as he heard the lock on the door click Paul turned the handle and carefully pushed the door open making sure not to hit Alex in the process. Once he was through the door he picked up the discarded phone as Alex attached himself to his neck, "hey Mom. I'll give you a call later but thank you."

With that he hung up the phone and carried Alex over to put the phone back in the cradle before he went back to lock the front door.

Once the door was locked he shifted Alex in his arms so he was in front of him so he could look at him, "so where did you last see your Mommy?"

The little boy turned and pointed at the door, "talking to man there."

"Okay, do you know where she went then?"

Alex turned back to Paul and shook his head, "Mommy sent me to playroom."

Paul nodded, "okay then. Why don't we search every room in this house from top to bottom? We've got to check every corner of every room just in case she's hiding from us."

He hoped by making it like a game for the little boy then he wouldn't be so worried and his idea seemed to be working because the little boy wriggled in his arms excitedly to be put down and begin which Paul happily obliged with.

As soon as Alex's feet hit the floor he grabbed Paul's hand and dragged him towards the kitchen and Paul watched as he searched everywhere, in every corner and under the table. The process was repeated in the playroom before they moved to the lounge.

Paul's eyes were settled on Alex as he searched the one end of the lounge before running down the other end to search but he stopped suddenly upon seeing the figure on the floor, "Mommy!"

Alex ran over to his Mom and hugged her tightly, "Mommy?"

Paul closed the gap between himself and Stephanie in a few footsteps and his stomach dropped seeing her sat on the floor with her knees to her chest and her head buried in them. Quickly he knelt at her feet, "Alex why don't you go into the playroom for a minute please?"

The little boy looked up at him with sad eyes, "what 'bout Mommy?"

"I'll take care of Mommy."

Reluctantly the little boy let go of Stephanie and went off to the playroom like he was asked.

As soon as Alex had left Paul moved around and sat by the side of Stephanie and placed his hand gently on her back, "what's going on?"

Stephanie lifted her head and turned to look at him with bloodshot eyes, tear stains running down both cheeks and the most broken look in her eyes anybody had ever seen and at that moment he felt like his heart was breaking.

Without saying a word he wrapped both arms around her and pulled her close letting her rest her head on his chest and cry which she didn't hesitate in doing as he quickly felt his shirt getting wet from her tears and her shoulders shook with the sobs eventually letting it all out knowing she was now safe.

When her sobs eventually died down he lifted her chin with his fingers before he stroked the hair back from her face, "you okay?"

Ignoring his question she went to push herself up, "I need to get Alex's dinner and bathe him and put him to bed."

Paul grabbed her arm before she could stand up and walk away, "no you won't. I will go and make Alex dinner and then I will bathe him and put him to bed and then I will make us dinner and you will tell me what's going on."

Turning her head away from him because she couldn't look at him she simply said, "what about Lucy?"

"Lucy's fine. My Dad was going to bathe her and put her to bed with my Mom's supervision and I think secretly they were relishing the opportunity so I am all yours."

She turned back to look at him, "why?"

Shaking his head he framed her face with his hands, "because I care."

With that he leant forward and pressed a kiss to the tip of her nose before he pushed himself up to go and make dinner for Alex but he was stopped in his tracks, "dinner was cooked, it just needs heating up."

He smiled over his shoulder at her before walking out of the room, "Alex, dinner's nearly ready."

After heating up the dinner for Alex Paul plated it up and placed it on the table in front of him before sitting at the table with him to give him his full focus and attention to take his mind off of Stephanie but it didn't last long.

A few mouthfuls in Alex looked up at Paul, "is Mommy mad?"

Paul shook his head, "don't speak with your mouth full please. As for your question your Mom isn't mad, just a little sad."

Taking on board what Paul said he didn't speak until his mouth was empty, "why?"

"It's just an adult thing, you're too young to understand. I need you to do me a favour though and be a good boy and eat all of your dinner for me and then I need you to have a bath and go to bed without getting upset okay?"

The little boy frowned not happy with what Paul had said but knew he had to, "okay."

Paul smiled softly and ruffled the little boys hair before he got up to tidy up the kitchen a little.

Once Alex had finished his dinner Paul ushered him upstairs to bathe him, he had no idea where anything was so there were a few mumbled curse words as he hit his head and stubbed his toes looking for things but eventually his persistence paid off and the little boy was sat happily in the bath splashing away.

After half an hour in the bath he knew he had been generous but he was overcompensating for the drama earlier and now he had to get him out of the bath, "Alex, we need to get you out now."

Alex violently shook his head, "nooooooo."

Paul couldn't help but chuckle as he looked so much like Stephanie, "remember I told you downstairs I needed you to have a bath and go to bed without getting upset? Please can you just get out of the bath and into your pyjamas so we can get you to bed."

"Maybe?"

A full blown laugh came out of Paul's mouth hearing the little boy say that, "maybe? It's a yes or a no answer Alex."

The little boy had a stern look on his face as he looked at Paul, "you gots to make Mommy better."

Paul squeezed his eyes together tightly hearing the little boy say that, he was only two but was so perceptive, "I promise I will do everything in my power to make her better but I can't do that if I'm sat here waiting for you."

Alex didn't say another word he just lifted his arms up for Paul to lift him out of the bath which he quickly did and dried him off before putting on a diaper and his pyjamas ready for bed.

As the little boy cuddled down in his bed he turned to Paul, "I don't like her sad, I love her."

Paul picked the book up off of the bedside table and sat on the edge of the bed next to him, "I hate seeing your Mommy sad too because I lo . . ." His voice trailed off as he turned his attention to the book in his hands to read him the story, "so where were you?"


	45. Chapter 45

Paul read to Alex until he was sound asleep before he quietly closed the book and placed it back on the bedside table before he got up and made sure the covers were all tucked in before he kissed Alex on the top of the head and tiptoed out of the room pulling the door closed behind him.

As he walked back down the stairs his mind drifted to thoughts of Stephanie, he knew in his heart Luke had been there he just didn't know how far things had gone between them.

Stepping into the lounge he sighed seeing her still sat in the same place he left her in. Walking over to her he perched on the arm of the couch, "what do you want for dinner?"

Without looking up at him she shrugged, "nothing."

He frowned, "you can't eat nothing, you have to eat something."

"But I don't want to eat, I can't stomach food."

He stood up before reaching down and grabbing her hands and pulled her up to her feet and kept a grip on her hands, "it doesn't matter if you're not hungry or you can't stomach food you still need to eat as you have to keep your strength up for Alex."

"Maybe he'd be better off without me though."

"Are you out of your mind?" He coughed and lowered his voice so as not to wake Alex, "are you out of your mind? I know you love Alex and he loves you so much, there is no way he would be better off with anybody else."

"But I put him in so much danger tonight."

"I don't know what happened though so I can't answer that."

With that he sat on the couch and patted the seat next to him, "tell me what happened."

Stephanie knew she wasn't going to get out of telling him what happened so she reluctantly sat down next to him with her hands in her lap, "I was just finishing up Alex's dinner when the doorbell rang so figuring it was like a salesman I went to answer it but when I opened it Luke was on the other side. I tried shutting the door when I saw it was him but he wouldn't let me as he put his foot in the way and was blabbering on about when he beat me up on those multiple occasions it was just an accident and how he wants us to move on together and then Alex came out and I got scared. I managed to get Alex to go back into the playroom but Luke kept insisting he wanted us to get back together and he wasn't taking no for an answer because he wanted us to talk but eventually he gave up but said he wasn't giving up on me. Now do you see why I put Alex in danger? If I'd just . . ."

He put his finger to her lips, "no you don't, don't do this to yourself. You can say 'if' or 'but' until the cows come home but this is not your fault, it's all on Luke because you've told him you're not interested and he's still pursuing you. I think you need to tell the cops."

"No! Paul, I can't do that."

"What? Why the hell not?"

She looked at her lap and played with her fingers, "I . . . I just can't."

Sighing heavily he didn't know what to do or say, he couldn't force her to go to the Police if she didn't want to but he also wasn't going to be able to relax knowing that Luke was hanging around trying to get close to her again, "well I can't make you go, I can only implore you to seriously think about it if not for you for Alex because although he wasn't directly in danger today there is no saying he won't be in the future if you shut down again like you did tonight."

Angrily her head snapped around to look at him, "and what do you mean by **that**?"

Running his hand wearily though his hair he sighed softly, "I didn't mean it like that. All I meant was that you didn't hear the phone ring or Alex answer it and you clearly didn't hear me knocking or Alex answer the door either which you know could have put him in danger if I was Luke."

"Fine, if you think like that then just get out, I want nothing to do with you."

She then stood up and stormed out of the living room and up the stairs to her bedroom throwing herself on the bed and crying again, she knew it was a mistake letting him into her life.

Paul sighed heavily as he watched her leave, "congratulations dumbass on a job well done." Reluctantly he pulled his phone out of his jacket pocket and dialled a very familiar number.

Sitting back on the couch he held the phone to his ear listening to it ring before it was picked up, "Mom it's me, I've completely fucked up."

Patricia frowned hearing the tone of his voice, "what happened? Are Steph and Alex okay? Did you find her?"

"Yeah they're fine, Steph was just the other side of the couch and Alex couldn't see her. I kind of insinuated that she put Alex in danger and now she hates me."

"I'm sure she doesn't hate you Paul."

"Oh you didn't see the look on her face."

She chuckled, "sweetie you insinuated she put her son in danger which she probably knew already and was already beating herself up over so just hearing it said out loud from another person probably just hurt her and once she has calmed down she'll like you again."

"But what if she doesn't calm down?"

"Then you'll just have to make her. So what happened to cause the disappearing act?"

Paul picked at invisible fluff on his jacket, "Luke turned up and was pestering her about getting back with him and he freaked her out but the worst part is he's not giving up. Mom she won't go to the Cops and she won't tell anybody and I am genuinely afraid that something bad will happen to either her or Alex because apparently he said when he beat her up previously it was just an 'accident'. How the hell is beating somebody up an accident? That's like saying driving off from the scene of a car crash 'just happened' and wasn't a conscious decision or anything."

Patricia couldn't help the smile that graced her lips hearing him talk with such passion about her even if it was under these circumstances, "well I don't know how anybody can think that but I do know that it is a dangerous state of mind for somebody to be in. If she won't go to the Police then you'll have to bring somebody in to look after her and to watch over her."

"Thanks for that Mom, that is so very helpful. Who the hell could I bring in that she would trust?"

She knew exactly what he could do but she wanted him to think it was his idea, "I don't know son, maybe somebody she already knows, something she is extremely close to and somebody she trusts around Alex."

"Shawn won't do it, he has Rebecca and Cameron to think about."

Groaning Patricia was ready to strangle her son for being so dense, "is there anybody else she would potentially trust? Maybe somebody who doesn't really have any ties and would happily give it all up for her for a few weeks to scare Luke away?"

Paul fell silent for a bit thinking it over but decided to change the subject instead,"so how's Lucy?"

"Lucy's fine, she's sound asleep. Your Dad enjoyed giving her a bath and then putting her to bed."

"Uh huh."

Shaking her head she was determined to get through to him so if he wasn't going to say it she would, "Paul listen to me for a minute. Your only ties right now are Lucy, you don't have a house to take care of or a mortgage to pay or anything so if you are so very worried about Stephanie and Alex why don't you offer to move in for a few weeks just until Luke goes away again? Who knows, maybe seeing you around he will leave within days because you're not exactly friendly looking sometimes."

He frowned, "hey! That is so not fair."

"You know what I mean, you're kind of on the large side thanks to working out."

"If I did do that what about Lucy? I wouldn't want to be without her and I couldn't ask you to look after her but then with work it would be so awkward dropping her off to you on the way there."

"I can understand your concerns for Lucy and I wouldn't suggest leaving her here with us but we will find a way around it to make everybody happy if you really think staying with Stephanie is the only option."

He pushed himself up from the couch and walked over to the window to look out as the sky grew dark, "yeah I guess. It's not my decision to make though, it's got to be hers. I should go and try and smooth things over with Steph before she kicks me out or something. I'll probably stay the night if that's okay with you? I'll drop back in the morning to shower and change and say hello to my daughter."

Patricia chuckled, "that's fine Paul. We're more than happy to take care of Lucy tonight so you can take care of Stephanie. Call us if you need anything."

"Will do, thanks Mom and I love you."

"Love you too son."

With that Paul flipped his phone shut slipping it back into his pocket before reaching to shut the curtains but as he did his eyes locked with a man in the bushes, he definitely wasn't leaving tonight.


	46. Chapter 46

Stephanie lay face first on the bed with her head buried underneath the pillow, she didn't want to see or hear Paul if he dared come anywhere near her.

Once he had closed the front room curtains he made sure the front and back doors were locked before he made his way upstairs to her bedroom softly knocking on the door when he reached it.

He wasn't overly surprised when there was no answer but he wasn't giving up so he slowly pushed the door open and stepped inside and his heart broke seeing her head buried under the pillow but he was still not going to be deterred.

Walking over to the bed he took a seat and ran his hand over her back, "can you look at me please?"

She didn't lift her head from beneath the pillow just mumbled something that was unintelligible to him, "yeah I didn't get that Steph, it sounded like martian talk." He hoped the little joke would make her lighten up.

Angrily lifting her head from beneath the pillow she glared at him, "I told you to leave me the fuck alone."

His eyes widened as he realised just how angry she was, before he even had chance to think of a response her head was back beneath the pillows hoping he would get the message but he was stubborn and didn't move, "Stephanie please. I know you're angry with me and you have every right to be but I want to talk to you like an adult not a child."

Slapping a hand over his mouth realising what he just said he quickly had to back-pedal before she kicked his ass, "I didn't mean it like that, I just meant . . ."

Before he had chance to finish his apology Stephanie had sat up and was glaring at him, "no I get it alright, you think I'm acting like a child and you want me to grow up and stop putting my son in danger because I am such a terrible parent."

He shook his head, "I did **not** mean it like that and hopefully you know it."

"I don't care what you meant, I'm leaving this room until you leave this house."

Stephanie attempted to stand up but he grabbed her around the waist preventing her before he pulled her back to him keeping a tight hold on her waist, "please just let me finish what I am trying to say before you throw me out."

Glaring at him she attempted to prise his hands apart but failed as he was quite strong, "working out before Lucy was born and periodically ever since has its benefits, it means I am stronger than you and I am going to keep hold of you and make you listen to me."

He could feel the tension in her body at the prospect of being held against her will so he moved around on the bed so he had his back to the top of the bed, "just relax and lean back against me okay? I promise I will not hurt you." His voice dropped to a whisper that she could barely understand, "I just need to have you close to me."

Sighing heavily she moved back up the bed with him and leant against his chest as he leant backwards, "so what's this big speech you want to give?"

Moving his hands from holding her waist he moved them to her shoulders and gently started to massage them as he could feel the tension in her body still, "I'm a little highly strung still after the phone call from Alex and finding you curled up on the floor and then finding out Luke had been here and I'm not thinking through everything I say before it comes out. I know this is no excuse for acting like a jackass and you have every right to still want to kick me out but even if you attempt to kick me out I'm still going to sleep on the couch as I'm not leaving you tonight."

Starting to feel relaxed as his hands worked their magic on her shoulders her eyes were drifting shut but they shot open when he said even if she tried to kick him out he wouldn't leave so she turned over and knelt inbetween his legs, "why won't you leave even if I want you to? What do you know or think you know?"

Paul thought about lying to her but thought better of it, "if I tell you you have to promise not to freak out."

"I will promise no such thing."

Deciding to be as annoying as her he crossed his arms over her chest, "well I'm not telling."

"What the hell? Are you two years old?"

Paul laughed softly, "man do I ever wish I was. Truth is I saw Luke outside when I was shutting the lounge curtains."

He bit his lip and waited for an explosion but he got nothing in response, "Steph, did you hear me?"

Sighing heavily she sat on the bed properly facing him, "I heard you, I wish I hadn't though. Paul what am I going to do? The Police don't believe me that he's stalking me as when they speak to him he acts all innocent and they believe him."

He was shocked by the revelation, "you spoke to the Police?"

Nodding she looked so sad, "yeah, the first time he started stalking me. As he was just following me and there was no real contact or anything to trace directly back to him they said there was nothing they could do."

"But now there is, there's the phone calls and there are the visits, I mean I can vouch for you that I have seen him following you and lurking outside of your house so you should talk to them again."

Shaking her head she played with her fingers, "I can't Paul, I'm too scared that I go to them and they do nothing and things get worse."

He understood where she was coming from and there was no way he could force her, "well seeing as you won't go to the cops we need to do something to protect you and Alex at home."

Stephanie didn't like where this was going, "whatever it is I say no. I don't want to employ somebody to scour my property or have some stranger sleeping in my house to 'protect' us because I would never be able to trust them and there is no way I am moving back to my parents house, too many questions."

"I know and I understand but I wasn't thinking along those lines."

Looking at him oddly she was almost nervous to ask what he was thinking, "do I even want to know what's going on in that head of yours?"

"In my defence it wasn't my idea."

She laughed, "that makes it all better . . . not. Just tell me what you're thinking."

He moved away from her a little needing to create some distance incase she hated the idea, "my Mom suggested it but maybe I . . . uh . . . you know."

"I really don't." Which was accompanied by a shake of the head, "I failed mind reading classes."

Deciding to just spit it out, "she thought maybe I should move in here for a few weeks."

With that he got up from the bed and went over to the window so he didn't have to look at her face, "I know it is an utterly terrible idea and you don't want a baby and me under your feet and you can handle things on your own and you just don't want me that close to you that much because of Alex and I totally understand but I had to say it."

As he paused to take a breath she jumped in, "you'd really move in here just to protect me and Alex?"

He turned around and nodded slowly not sure whether she wanted to punch him or hug him, "I'd go to the end of the Earth and back again to keep you both safe."

"What about your parents? What about somebody to take care of Lucy whilst you're at work? They live all of the way over the other side of town."

He laughed softly, "my parents are fine with it, well my Mom is at least and she said we would work something out for taking care of Lucy during the work day."

Moving to the edge of the bed she stood up and walked over to him, "you mean it don't you? You really would go to the end of the Earth for us."

Paul was embarrassed to be so vulnerable in front of her but if he was maybe she'd trust in him, "I mean it with my whole heart. If you want us to move in then I will rope Shawn in to help me bring some stuff over tomorrow after work so you don't ever have to worry about Luke again."

Biting her lip she thought it all over, she had never felt safer than the night she had spent in his arms and now he was stood in front of her her worries about Luke seemed to disappear as she knew he would be there to protect both her and Alex, "I'd like it please, if you're sure you don't mind."

Opening his arms to her he smiled, "I'm positive I don't mind, I just hope Alex won't."

Walking into his arms she wrapped her arms tightly around him and rested her head on his chest as he wrapped his arms around her too, "he won't, he won't mind at all."

Paul rested his cheek on the top of Stephanie's head and closed his eyes content holding her in his arms knowing she would be safe whilst outside Luke raged seeing their clinch.


	47. Chapter 47

After spending a few minute holding each other tightly Paul reluctantly pulled back, "why don't you go and relax in a bath and I will call Shawn and see if he can help me do some moving tomorrow before I start on dinner?"

The thought of being in a room alone, even on the first floor, made Stephanie nervous so trying to disguise it she pouted, "I don't want a bath."

Laughing softly he pointed to the bathroom, "go on, you need to relax so just have lots of bubbles and don't worry about a thing."

Chewing her lip nervously she shuffled her feet, "I can't."

He didn't need to ask why because he already knew so reaching up he stroked her cheek gently, "how about I come in with you whilst the bath is filling up and I hang around up here to call Shawn and I let you know as soon as I go downstairs?"

Smiling shyly she nodded, "could you please? I know it is stupid as I'm on the first floor and there's no way he could get in but it still makes me really nervous."

Kissing the top of her head he rubbed her arms softly, "it's not stupid. Come on."

Taking her hand in his he led her to the bathroom and sat her down on the lid of the toilet as he ran her bath adding lots of bubbles. As soon as the bath was ready he motioned to it, "one bath for her Majesty. I will be in your room if you need me so just shout."

Walking out of the bathroom he pulled the door to behind him leaving her alone as he made his way back to her bedroom and took a seat on the bed pulling the phone from his pocket and dumping it on the bed as he moved to lean comfortably against the pillows. Once he was comfortable he flipped his phone open and scrolled down his phone book until he reached Shawn's name and he pressed 'Call'.

Shawn was relaxing on his couch with Rebecca when he heard his cell phone ringing and reaching to pick it up he laughed seeing Paul's name flashing on the screen, "somebody doesn't know how to use a house phone." Picking up his phone he put it to his ear, "has your Mommy banned you from using the house phone?"

"What?" Paul was confused by what Shawn was saying not putting any thought into the fact that he was calling on his cellphone and he didn't normally.

Shawn frowned hearing such an odd response from Paul, "uh I mean you rang cell phone to cell phone and it's evening so you should be at home and I'm at home so normally you'd use the home phone."

The light bulb finally went off in Paul's head, "ohhhhh, yeah sorry about that. I'm calling on your cell phone as I'm not at home."

Shawn's ears pricked up hearing that, "oooh, did your Mommy kick you out and you need somewhere to stay?"

Not being entirely in the mood for the jokes Paul sighed, "oh for fucks sake stop being such a child and let me actually get on to why I rang you."

Sitting up straight pushing Rebecca off of his shoulder Shawn's attention was now completely on Paul and finding out what the hell was going on because the guy on the other end of the phone right now was not his best friend, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you. Paul what's going on and where are you?"

Sighing heavily Paul ran a hand through his hair, "I'm at Stephanie's."

Shawn's eyes widened and his mouth opened to spit out a witty comeback but he quickly shut it again knowing now was not the right time to be silly, "you're at Stephanie's? As in your boss Stephanie? Why are you at Stephanie's?"

Hearing Shawn say all that Rebecca's ears pricked up and she turned to face Shawn wanting details as soon as he got them.

Playing with the comforter on the bed Paul contemplated not telling Shawn the entire truth but he knew he couldn't keep it from him so decided to give it to him in a nutshell, "in a nutshell I had a bad feeling so called Stephanie's house and Alex picked up and he said she'd gone and he couldn't find her and the last time he'd seen her she was talking to a man at the door. Leaving my Mom on the phone with Alex I broke all of the laws of the road racing over here to find out what was going on and I found her crouched on the floor behind the couch, apparently Luke had been here and he wants to get back with her and she's scared out of her mind. Shawn I could fucking kill him, my heart broke when I saw her and then to see the scumbag still hanging around outside when I shut the curtains angered me even further."

He was trying so hard to process everything that Paul had said but all Shawn could focus on was Luke's name, "is she okay? Is Alex okay? They're not hurt are they? If Luke has hurt either of them I will kill him."

Paul was quick to reassure them, "no they're not hurt . . . physically. Alex is totally fine but Steph, she's not come out of it so well. This is why I'm ringing you, I need a favour."

Moving to the edge of the couch Shawn was ready to get up and grab his shoes and head out if that was what was needed of him, "shoot, I'm all ears and whatever it is the answer is yes."

Laughing softly Paul knew that was what he would say, "I need you to help me move some of my stuff over to Steph's tomorrow after work."

Shawn looked at Rebecca oddly, "you want me to help you move some of your stuff to Steph's tomorrow? Why?"

"Because me and Lucy are going to be moving in with her and Alex for a while. Somebody needs to protect her Shawn and I'd rather it was someone she could trust like me or you. Before you say it yes she knows about it and she's okay with it."

"What about Lucy during the day?"

Paul shrugged even though Shawn couldn't see him, "me and my parents are going to work something out. They're fully aware of the plan and what's going on, I just need somebody to help me move some of mine and Lucy's stuff over here."

Shawn laughed softly, "you know me so well pre-empting my questions. You know I'll help you but how are you going to pack stuff? I'm assuming you're staying at Steph's tonight and you have work tomorrow."

Packing was not something Paul had really thought about, "uh . . . you know I haven't really thought about that. Maybe my Mom will do some when I'm at work?"

Having listened to Shawn's side of the conversation Rebecca could see an opening for her to be of use too and she started to nudge Shawn and poke him in the ribs to try and get his attention.

Shawn was trying to hold a conversation with Paul but it was being made difficult by Rebecca poking him, "quit it Bec, I'm trying to talk to Paul."

Paul laughed at Shawn, "aww, your poor wife is getting no loving and she doesn't like it."

Shawn grumbled at Paul as Rebecca continued to poke him causing him to turn his attention to her, "what?"

She pouted, "I'm trying to help here. Why not ask Paul if it would help if I went over to his parents tomorrow and packed some stuff for him. Cam is in kindergarten in the morning and then is going over to Tyler's for a couple of hours so I'm free all day."

Whilst Shawn was preoccupied by Rebecca Paul's attention was drawn to the door as Stephanie walked back into the room wearing just a towel and climbed onto the bed next to him and cuddled up to his chest resting her head there wanting to be close to him.

Paul switched the phone to his other hand and wrapped his now free arm around Stephanie waiting for Shawn to come back on the line.

Once Rebecca had explained everything Shawn turned his attention back to the phone, "okay Paul Bec had an idea. Cam is out all day tomorrow so what if she went to your parents and packed for you or helped your Mom pack whichever is agreeable for your Mom and you."

"She'd really do that Shawn?"

Shawn laughed, "yes, the bruises on my ribs prove it was all her idea and she wants to do it."

Smiling softly Paul was kind of relieved, "well that would be great. I'll have to talk to my Mom in the morning when I go home but I'll give her a call and let her know what my Mom says if that's okay?"

Nodding at Rebecca Shawn smiled, "okay cool, I'll tell her that. After work though I'm all yours to help with the moving so tell Stephanie she has to provide snacks."

Paul rolled his eyes, "yeah whatever. I'll talk to you in the morning. Night Shawn."

"Night Paul."

Both men ended the calls and turned back their attention back to their respective partners.

Shawn tossed his cell phone onto the coffee table before he sat back and pulled Rebecca into his arms, "thank God for Paul, if it wasn't for him I don't even want to think about the situation Stephanie and Alex would be in right now."

Rebecca rubbed his chest gently as she got settled, "Steph is a very lucky lady."

When Paul ended the call he placed his cell phone on the bed before sliding down a little and rolling onto his side to be face to face with Stephanie placing his hand on her hip, "so how was the bath?"

Smiling softly she placed her hand over his on her hip, "it was nice thank you."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it. So what do you want for dinner?"

She shrugged, "I don't really care, I'm not that hungry."

"Well I'm starving so you're going to have to eat." He smiled sheepishly at her, "I missed my dinner so now I need food."

Rolling onto her back she kept hold of his hand pulling him over with her so he was slightly on top of her, "well I know of something we'd both like to eat."

Leaning up to kiss him she was shocked when he pulled away, "no I can't."

Moving off of the bed he stood up pacing back and forth a little, "I can't do it, it's too soon, you don't really want it."

Sitting up she wrapped her arms protectively around herself, "is there something wrong with me?"

Shaking his head violently he quickly walked around the other side of the bed and knelt by the side of the bed he pulled her legs over the side of the bed pulling her closer to the edge and closer to him, "there is nothing wrong with you. You are beautiful, intelligent, sexy, amazing and did I happen to mention beautiful and sexy? I really like you and I don't want to rush this. I know you didn't **really** want that to happen, I don't know why you suggested it but just know that I will never take advantage of you and when the time is right it will happen."

Looking at her hands in her lap she sighed, "I'm sorry. I know it was stupid and everything but I wanted to be close to you."

Lifting her chin with his fingers he looked deep into her eyes, "we can be close without doing that. I need to go and start on dinner so we're not eating at 2am though so whilst I do that you can change."

He stood up and pressed a kiss to the top of her head before going to walk out of the room but stopped in the doorway to let his eyes scan her body as her eyes went back to the floor, "Steph."

Lifting her head to look at him she chewed on her lip nervously, "yes?"

"Just a towel is a really good look on you." He let his eyes scan her body once more before he blew her a kiss and walked out of the room hoping her confidence wasn't at rock bottom.

After Paul had left the room Stephanie got up and searched through her drawers for some pyjamas, her head was all over the place tonight and she clearly wasn't thinking straight but luckily for her Paul was because if they had had sex she would have regretted it in the morning.


	48. Chapter 48

Looking through the cupboards for something light and easy to cook Paul eventually settled on a mushroom omelette. Taking the eggs and mushrooms out of the fridge he then went in search of a bowl, a frying pan and some utensils to cook with. Once he had found everything he set about mixing the omelette and peeling and chopping the mushrooms before he put it in the frying pan to cook.

After putting on a comfy pair of pyjamas Stephanie walked out of her room and quickly checked on a still sleeping Alex before she headed downstairs.

Walking into the kitchen she smiled softly seeing Paul at the stove cooking with the sleeves of his shirt all rolled up. Going up behind him she wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her chin on his shoulder, "I'm sorry about what happened upstairs."

Placing the spatula on the top he rubbed her arms gently, "don't be sorry, you have nothing to be sorry for."

"But I do Paul. I shouldn't have made a pass at you because it is too soon, I would have regretted it in the morning but in that moment right then I wanted to be as close to you as I could possibly be and sex just seemed to be the answer."

Picking up the spatula he flipped the omelette over before he turned around in Stephanie's arms and wrapped his own arms around her waist, "sex is never the answer to anything, it's only a complication if you're not ready. I know I'm a man and I'm supposed to want sex all of the time but I lo . . . respect you and I want to do this right. I fully understand where you were coming from though so just don't worry about it okay?"

Nodding her head she leant up on her tiptoes and kissed him softly before pulling away to get a couple of plates and some knives and forks.

Once the omelette was cooked he dished it up on two plates an they sat down to eat.

After they'd finished the put all of the dishes in the sink to do in the morning before they headed up to bed together. No words were needed because they both knew they'd be sharing one bed and they were both happy and comfortable with that.

The next morning they were both woken before the alarm by Alex jumping on the bed, "Paul's here, Paul's here, Paul's here."

Stephanie groaned as her eyes fluttered open, "stop jumping on the bed Alex."

Refusing to listen to his Mom Alex kept jumping on the bed until two big strong arms pulled him down, "I think your Mom told you to stop jumping."

Alex squealed with laughter as he landed on the mattress with a thump, "again."

"Alex you won't be doing it again because we have to get you ready for Grandma and Grandpa's."

"Noooo, I want to stay here with Paul."

Paul laughed softly, "well sadly I have to go home and see my daughter before I have to go to work."

Alex pouted, "not fair."

Sighing Stephanie climbed out of bed, "well you will see him tonight Alex so let's go."

Alex didn't have time to celebrate or ask questions because his Mom quickly picked him up off of the bed and placed him on the floor before ushering him out of the room to get him dressed.

As soon as Alex and Stephanie had left Paul slid out of bed and started to get dressed to head home and see Lucy and talk to his Mom before work.

Once he was dressed he went off to find Stephanie and Alex but only had to follow the excited chatter of Alex to the little boys room.

Knocking gently on the door he stuck his head inside, "hey I'm going to head out now to get home and shower and see Lucy before work. Will you be okay?"

Nodding her head she smiled, "we will be fine. I will see you at work."

Nodding he had to resist the urge to give her a kiss goodbye, "yeah you will. See you tonight Alex."

Smiling brightly the little boy waved, "bye!"

Laughing to himself Paul headed down the stairs making sure he had everything on him before he headed out and got in his car before driving home.

Back in the house Stephanie was just pulled Alex's t-shirt over his head when he got a serious look on his face, "I likes Paul lots."

She chuckled and ruffled the little boys hair before tucking his t-shirt into his trousers, "I know you do. Come on and let's get you some breakfast."

Ushering him out of the room they headed down to the kitchen to get some breakfast.

Unlocking the front door and pushing it open Paul smiled when he was greeted by the sight of his Dad walking down the stairs with his daughter, "there's my baby girl."

Kicking the door shut he walked over to them and lifted the little girl out of his Dad's arm and kissed her cheek before holding her close, "were you a good girl for your Grandparents?"

His Dad chuckled softly, "as good as can be expected. She woke up a few times looking for you but she went back to sleep pretty quickly."

"I'm sorry Dad."

Shaking his head his Dad frowned, "don't be sorry, Stephanie and Alex needed you and you were being the man me and your Mom always hoped you would be."

Paul chuckled, "speaking of Mom, where is she?"

"Oh she's in the shower, I was going to get Lucy some breakfast whilst we waited for you to come home."

Nodding his head Paul shifted Lucy in his arms, "well looks like I've saved you the trouble, you can just make the coffee and I'll get the breakfast."

The two men walked into the kitchen with Paul strapping Lucy into her high chair as his Dad put the kettle on.

Ten minutes later and Paul was sat at the table with a cup of coffee and a couple of pieces of toast for himself and a bottle of milk and some cereals for Lucy when his Mom walking into the kitchen, "morning Paul."

Lifting his head he smiled at his Mom, "morning. Thanks for watching Lucy for me."

Shaking her head she pressed a kiss to the top of the little girls head, "it wasn't a problem, she was no bother. How are Stephanie and Alex?"

Sighing heavily he took a big bite out of his toast chewing and swallowing it before he replied, "Alex is fine, Stephanie isn't so much but she has agreed that me moving in for a while would be a good idea so after work tonight Shawn is going to come over and help me take some stuff over to Steph's."

Patricia nodded, "so you want me to pack some stuff up for you?"

Laughing softly he couldn't believe how well his Mom could read him, "yes please but Rebecca has offered to come and help as she has a day free, I just need to call her and let her know if you think that would help."

"That would be great, if she doesn't mind because I doubt your Father will be much use."

Paul Snr. smiled innocently, "well somebody will have to watch Lucy."

Rolling her eyes at her husband Patricia shook her head, "just tell her to come over whenever she is free. Now back to Stephanie."

Paul sighed and shook his head, "I'd really not talk about her, I'd rather we work out how I'm going to get Lucy to and pick her up from you whilst I am staying with Stephanie."

Patricia and Paul Snr. were both quiet as they thought about how they could work it out before Paul Snr. spoke up, "what about if we met up at the park just outside of town? If you take a different route from Stephanie's you'd pass the park and it's not really out of your way to get to and from work and we could meet you there about 8:10 in the morning and then we could be waiting there for you when you get off work?"

Thinking about how he would get to and from there he smiled when he realised they were right, "yes that would be great. If it doesn't work out I'll just drive her here to you and then go on to work and just come back here before going back to Stephanie's."

Patricia smiled brightly, "now that's settled is there anything else I can do to help?"

Looking at his watch Paul groaned when he saw the time, "can you finish feeding Lucy please? I have to shower and change."

Shooing her son out of the kitchen Patricia took a seat at the table, "go, you can't be late for work."

She picked up the spoon in Lucy's dish and started to feed her as Paul took another bite of toast before running out of the kitchen taking his phone out of his pocket to text Rebecca as he walked up the stairs.

Across town Stephanie had just pulled up at her parents to drop Alex off early as she wasn't comfortable being alone in the house for long.

As her Mom opened the front door and ushered them inside Stephanie hugged her quickly before removing Alex's coat, "now be a good boy and Mommy will pick you up tonight."

Alex pouted, "what about Paul? I thought I was seeing him 'gain?"

Linda's eyes widened and her eyebrows raised, "seeing Paul again?"

Innocently Alex turned to his Grandma, "he stayed last night and Mommy said I'd see him tonight."

Turning to her daughter Linda looked at her daughter shocked, "care to tell me what's going on?"

Sighing softly she ignored her Mom, "come and give me a hug Alex."

Obediently he ran back to his Mom and gave her a hug and a kiss, "Love you."

Stephanie smiled, "love you too baby boy."

Standing back up she looked at her Mom, "I've got to go, I'll see you tonight."

Shaking her head Linda grabbed her daughters arm, "not so fast." Turning her attention to Alex she smiled softly, "why don't you go and see what your Grandpa is up to."

Alex ran off leaving the two women together allowing Linda to grill her daughter properly, "okay so what's going on?"

Deciding to be vague about it Stephanie shrugged, "he stayed over last night and is moving in for a few weeks with his daughter."

Linda was convinced there was more to the story than Stephanie was letting on, "why is he moving in?"

"Oh you know, just this and that. I've really got to go though, I have lots to do at work."

With that she ran out of the door raising her Mom's suspicions further.

When she was in the safe confines of her car Stephanie took a deep breath, she wanted so badly to be honest with her Mom but she couldn't bring herself to actually say the words to her.


	49. Chapter 49

Paul walked down the stairs tying his tie after taking a shower in a record breaking time because he didn't want to be late for work but he also wanted to spend a little more time with Lucy.

Entering the kitchen he smiled seeing Lucy still sat in her high chair with cereal all over her face, "that's my girl, eating tidy is so overrated."

Patricia lifted her head and smiled at him, "be my guest cleaning her up then."

He was already one step ahead of her and had a cloth in hand before he started to clean up her face before he lifted her out of her high chair, "Rebecca said she'll be here after she's dropped Cameron at Kindergarten. I've got the suitcases down again to help, anything you're unsure of leave it and I'll deal with it tonight. I really need to get going to work though."

Even though he had to leave he made no move to put Lucy down again, after everything with Stephanie the night before and being apart from Lucy overnight he was feeling incredibly protective.

Noticing her sons reluctance to let Lucy go Patricia reached out and touched his arm, "she's safe you know, nobody is going to hurt her or take her from you."

His head snapped up to look at his Mom, "is she though? That's what Steph thought about Luke and look what happened to her. How am I meant to know that Sarah isn't going to come waltzing back in here and demand custody of Lucy and take her away from me?"

"She won't Paul, she can't. After the stunt she pulled no judge in the land will give her anything but supervised visits in a controlled environment if she dared come anywhere near you again."

Squeezing his eyes tightly shut to try and block the images of Sarah taking Lucy away from his mind he sighed heavily, "I hope you're right."

Reluctantly he handed Lucy over to his Mom before he kissed the top of her head and rubbed her back gently, "call me if **anything** happens."

Knowing her son needed the reassurance she nodded, "of course we will. Just have a good day and we will see you tonight."

Kissing his Mom on the cheek he reluctantly left to go to work.

Linda shut the door slowly after Stephanie left, there was something she wasn't being told and come hell or high water she was going to find out what it is.

Walking into the lounge she sat on the sofa next to Alex who was leaning against his Grandpa as he read the newspaper to the little boy.

Vince noticed Linda's odd demeanour and paused in the middle of the article so he could talk to his wife, "what's going on Linda?"

Frowning she shrugged, "it's probably nothing."

Shrugging he went back to reading to the little boy.

As soon as Alex got bored of being read to he slid off the couch taking his Grandma's hand, "cars?"

Chuckling she stood up and followed him to the playroom to play cars with him.

Settling on the floor Linda watched Alex as he started to set up his cars, "so you like Paul do you Alex?"

Without lifting his head the little boy nodded, "he plays with me."

"Is he nice to your Mommy?"

"He cuddles Mommy in bed. I wokes them jumping on the bed s'morning."

Linda laughed softly, "I bet your Mommy didn't like that."

The little boy shook his head, "I gots told off. Paul's nice to me though, he isn't mean like Mommy is sometimes and he came when I couldn't find Mommy."

Her eyes widened in alarm at the statement, "what do you mean 'when you couldn't find Mommy' Alex? Where did your Mommy go?"

Lifting his head to look at his Grandma he frowned, "Mommy was talking to a man and then played hide and go seek with me."

Hearing the way the little boy talk made Linda's stomach drop, "when was this Alex?"

"Yest'day, Paul's Mom promised me more candy when I sees her next."

Confused Linda took the car from the little boys hand, "what do you mean Paul's Mom? Did she come over to?"

Shaking his head he reached for his car, "on the phone silly. When I was waiting for Paul she talked to me."

Handing the car back to the little boy she then stood up from the floor before quickly walking out of the playroom and back to the living room where Vince was, "I think, no actually I am convinced that Luke is back on the scene."

Vince looked at his wife, "what? Why do you think that?"

"Alex said Stephanie was talking to a man and then played hide and go seek with him but then earlier he'd said Steph had gone missing and that's why Paul had gone over. Why is she not telling us this stuff Vince? We are her parents and we care for her, she needs our support."

He frowned, "she has Paul apparently."

Linda looked at her husband like he was crazy, "exactly how much do we know about Paul? We can't trust him to look after her like we could."

Standing up he put his hands on his wife's shoulders, "take a deep breath and calm down. We will talk to Stephanie about this tonight like adults and until then you need to calm down and not scare Alex."

Glaring at her husband Linda turned and walked back to the playroom.

Paul walked into the office with a coffee in hand walking straight into Stephanie's office and placed it on her desk in front of her, "one coffee."

Lifting her head she sighed softly, "you don't know how much I need this right now."

Walking around her desk her perched himself on the edge of the desk to the side of her, "you do look a lot more stressed now than before I left. Luke didn't try anything did he?"

Shaking her head she placed her hand on his thigh, "no he didn't, don't worry. I'm stressed because my Mom knows something is going on."

Placing his hand over hers he squeezed it gently, "so tell her."

"I tried but the words wouldn't come out, I didn't know how to actually say to her that Luke was back around."

Lifting her hand to his mouth he kissed it gently, "well if you want or need help telling them then you know I am here for you."

Standing up from her seat she moved to stand between his legs, "you're amazing, I don't know what I did to deserve somebody like you in my life."

He chuckled, "well it helps that you pay me to be here."

Slapping his chest gently with her free hand she pouted, "that's not fair."

Grabbing the hand that hit his chest he moved it to hold it like he had her other hand before he stood up so their bodies were impossibly close together and he moved his head closer to hers so he could feel her breath on his face and vice versa before he whispered, "I would be here even if you weren't paying me."

Taking the opportunity he tilted his head to the side and kissed her softly before he pulled away not wanting to take advantage of her, "I've been dying to do that since Alex woke us up. I was thinking we could have a little date at lunchtime, what do you think?"

As a deep blush stained her cheeks she ducked her head, "I think I'd like that."

Noticing the blush and not wanting to push her too far and make her uncomfortable he carefully took a step back, "I'd better go back to work then, I will see you at lunch."

Dropping her hands he placed a quick kiss to the top of her head before he walked out of the room.


	50. Chapter 50

Paul waited until Stephanie was in a meeting before he slipped out of the office and went downstairs to reception smiling at Nikki, "I need a favour."

Looking up from her work Nikki smiling softly, "and what would this favour be?"

"Can you handle Steph's call for a minute please? I need to run out and do something real quick whilst she's in a meeting."

"I can." She looked at him suspiciously, "where are you going?"

Paul was already walking away from her so he just waved and kept on walking out of the door to run a quick errand.

Ten minutes later he returned to the office smiling gratefully at Nikki before silently placing a daisy on the desk in front of her as she was on the phone and heading back up to the office.

Sitting down just before the office door opened and Stephanie walked out Paul breathed a sigh of relief that he had gotten back in time.

Working hard for the rest of the morning Paul was grateful when lunchtime arrived so he could whisk Stephanie away for an hour.

Getting up from his desk he walked into her office, "okay it's lunchtime, let's go."

Lifting her head she raised her eyebrow at him, "where's the fire?"

Smiling sheepishly he shrugged, "I just want to make the most of our lunch hour."

Pushing her chair back she stood up and grabbed her jacket, "okay okay, let's go."

Leading her to the elevator and out of the office Paul was pleased when they got outside so he could slip his hand into hers.

Once they were outside and he slipped his hand into hers holding it Stephanie couldn't help the smile that broke out on her face as he led her down the street before stopping to pick up some sandwiches and then carrying on.

When they reached a bakery Paul stopped, "stay here a second and I'll be back."

Frowning she just nodded and watched as he walked inside the shop before walking out again a couple of minutes later with a box in hand, "okay let's go Steph."

The two walked to the park before finding a picnic table in a quiet corner and sitting down. Placing the box on the table he pulled the sandwiches out of their bag and placed them on the table before opening the box and taking out a muffin placing it on the table before shutting the box again.

Stephanie looked at him oddly as she watched his movements and opened her mouth to say something but shut it again when he opened his jacket and pulled out a packet of candles for a birthday cake and a lighter before he placed them on the table and opened the packet of candles taking a holder and a candle out putting them together before inserting them into the top of the muffin and lighting it.

Once the candle was in the muffin and it was alight Paul placed the lighter on the table before looking up at Stephanie and smiling sheepishly seeing the odd look on her face, "sorry, I wanted it to be romantic as this is meant to be a date. I know this isn't overly romantic but it's the best I could do considering the circumstances."

Biting down on her lip her face softened as she listened to him, "that is so sweet."

He just shrugged, "it's nothing. Let's eat our food before they get cold."

Giggling she picked up her sandwich and ripped the packaging open and tucking in.

After a peaceful lunch together Stephanie was happier and more relaxed than she had been in a while.

Watching Paul as he blew out the candle and took it out of the muffin before tidying everything away she got up from her seat and walked over to him taking his hand stopping him from packing up, "look at me."

Stopping what he was doing he turned his head to look at her and smiled lifting his free hand to tuck a stray lock of hair behind her ear, "you're beautiful."

Lifting her free hand she stroked the side of his face, "and you are handsome and the sweetest man I have ever met in my life. Nobody else would have thought to do something like this."

Shrugging his shoulders he was quick to dismiss it, "it was nothing, really."

"It was to me."

Reaching up she pressed a soft kiss to his lips, "thank you."

Playing with her hand he smiled shyly, "I've never felt like this with a woman before, so relaxed and happy."

"Not even with your ex?"

Shaking his head he bit his lip nervously, "no. I thought that was love but it obviously wasn't."

Unsure whether to ask what was on her mind or not she just nodded letting him take the lead from here.

Seeing the nerves on her face Paul pulled his hand free gently, "we'd better get back to the office."

He finished tidying up and reached his hand out towards her watching as she took it and they headed back to the office.

When they were just outside of the office their hands dropped and they drifted apart so people didn't find out they were together.

Walking back into her office Paul laughed when he saw Shawn sat at the desk, "where the hell have you two been?"

Stephanie glared playfully at Shawn, "are you my Mother?"

Shawn stood up, "why yes I am."

Rolling his eyes Paul slapped Shawn's shoulder gently, "how long have to been waiting?"

"Half an hour. I had my lunch then came here to talk details about tonight."

Stephanie quietly slipped off into her office leaving the boys to talk amongst themselves.

After discussing details for the evening Shawn finally noticed that Stephanie was no longer there so he took the opportunity to grill Paul, "so where were you?"

Paul shrugged, "just lunch why?"

Shawn smirked at him, "lunch with the boss huh? Anything you want to tell me?"

Sighing heavily Paul resisted the urge to smack Shawn, "no. Don't you think it was a smart idea to take her out and try and cheer her up after last night?"

"When you put it like that I guess you're right Paul, I still think you should ask her out."

"And I still think you should get out and get back to work so I can get back to mine."

Putting his hands up in defence Shawn stepped towards the door, "I'm going. I'll be back after work so don't work too hard."

Rolling his eyes at Shawn Paul walked around his desk and sat down sighing heavily as his mind drifted back to lunch and he wondered if he had said too much.

Stephanie was kept occupied all afternoon by meetings and paperwork but in-between her mind drifted to what he'd said at lunch and she kept going back to the one question, was he trying to tell her he loved her?

As the end of the work day came closer she found herself more preoccupied with thoughts of what happened at lunch which was leading her to be less and less productive. Finally giving up on work at ten to five she pushed her chair back and stood up walking to the doorway, "Paul come in here a second please."

He nervously got up from his seat and walked into her office.

"Shut the door please Paul."

Those words only intensified his nerves. Turning around he shut the door before turning back to her, "you wanted to see me?"

Sitting on the edge of the desk she nodded her head, "I wanted to ask you something about lunch."

Nodding his head slowly he could only pray things weren't about to go horribly wrong.

"Paul at lunch when you said you thought you loved your ex but this made you realise that what you felt then wasn't love were you trying to tell me you loved me?"

His eyes widened and he gulped nervously, "umm . . . I . . . uh . . . umm."

Looking at him oddly she didn't understand why he was so nervous, "it's either a yes or a no answer."

Looking deep into her eyes he opened his mouth to respond but shut it quickly and thought again about what he was going to say, "I would like to actually answer this question but I don't think either of us are ready for those words to be uttered so I will just leave this hanging out there and you can come to your own conclusion."

Stephanie wasn't sure how to feel about that, part of her wanted him to say those words but the other part of her wasn't ready for him to actually say those words.

Luckily for the two of them the awkwardness was broken by a hammering on the door, "Steph! Have you seen Paul?"

Paul chuckled and walked over to the door and opened it, "I'm here."

Shawn smirked, "ready?"

Rolling his eyes Paul looked over his shoulder, "Steph is it okay if I had out a couple of minutes early?"

Nodding her head silently she just motioned to the door.

Shawn grabbed his arm and dragged him out of the door as Paul's eyes stayed locked with Stephanie's silently questioning her asking her if they were okay.


	51. Chapter 51

Stephanie felt helpless as she watched Shawn drag Paul out of the office. Turning around she walked back to her desk and started to pack up to pick Alex up before heading home before Paul got there.

As Shawn dragged him out of the office Paul slapped his hand off of him, "slow down will you, there's no fire."

Shawn looked at him like he was crazy, "but I want to see Cam before he goes to bed tonight so we need to get moving."

"Jeebus, I'm moving a few things not an entire house, it won't take **that** long."

To satisfy Shawn though he quickly grabbed his things and followed him out of the office.

Arriving home Paul walked through the front door only to nearly fall over the bags and boxes at the door, "what the hell?"

Shawn sniggered behind Paul as he navigated the boxes without nearly breaking his neck, "I'd say your Mom and my wife have been busy."

Paul rolled his eyes, "thank you for that wonderful insight Captain Obvious."

Before Shawn could reply Patricia walked out of the kitchen, "you're home early."

Paul looked down at the boxes and back up at his Mom, "yes I am. You've been busy."

She nodded, "Rebecca and I worked hard most of the day going through Lucy's things and packing it all up and dividing things that needed to stay here and things you could take with you."

"I guess I'd better change and start on my things, hopefully it won't take long. Where's Lucy at? I want a cuddle first."

She laughed softly and motioned to the lounge, "she's laying on the couch with your Father watching TV."

Shawn went to quickly slide past Paul and steal Lucy but Paul saw what he was doing and quickly hurried into the lounge first going straight over to his Father and scooping Lucy up into a cuddle, "I missed you. Maybe Uncle Shawn would like to give you your dinner?"

Patting Paul's shoulder Shawn smirked, "you bet your ass I would."

Earning a glare from the other three adults in the room Shawn put his hands up in defence, "what?"

Paul rolled his eyes, "you said the 'a' word."

Carefully passing Lucy to Shawn Paul looked at him sternly, "watch your language."

He then headed upstairs to change and pack.

Stephanie walked through her parents front door and was immediately attacked by Alex, "Mommy!"

Laughing softly she bent down and scooped him up, "hello little man. Were you a good boy for Grandma and Grandpa."

Nodding his head enthusiastically he looked at his Mom seriously, "where's Paul?"

Kissing the boys cheek quickly she smiled, "he's gone to his home to pick up some things and will then be going to our home."

Looking up she spotted her parents stood there looking quite stern so bending down she put Alex back on the floor, "why don't you go and tidy up the playroom whilst Mommy has a quick word with Grandma and Grandpa?"

Alex obediently toddled back to the playroom allowing Stephanie to turn to her parents, "what happened?"

Vince motioned to the lounge, "let's take a seat."

Looking at her Father strangely she walked past her parents and went into the lounge and took a seat, "okay now will you tell me what's going on?"

Linda sat down on the couch opposite Stephanie, "we know about last night, Alex told us."

Stephanie's eyes widened, "it wasn't how it sounded."

"Really? Then how was it Stephanie?"

She looked down at her hands in her lap, "things got a little crazy, that's all."

Linda was irritated by her lack of forthcoming with information, "a little crazy? Is that what you call it when somebody has to race across town because your own son can't find you?"

Vince stepped in, "Linda calm down, getting worked up won't get us anywhere."

Looking at her Father accusingly Stephanie snapped, "where are you hoping to get Dad?"

"We're hoping to get to the bottom of what's going on and find out the **truth**. Steph we love you and Alex and want what is best for you but when it is pretty obvious something is going on you can't blame us for being worried."

Before Stephanie had chance to answer her Dad Linda jumped in, "it's Luke isn't it?"

Stephanie sighed softly, "it's nothing, it's just work stressing me out."

Linda looked at her husband incredulously before she turned back to her daughter, "Stephanie please, all we're asking for here is the truth. We just want what's best for you and Alex and we want you both to be safe and if Luke is back in the picture we want to know so we can be aware."

Squeezing her eyes tightly shut Stephanie wanted to tell them but she just couldn't. Pushing herself up off of the couch she walked out of the room, "Alex, time to go."

Alex came rushing out of the playroom towards his Mom, "all tidy."

Chuckling softly she reached for his coat and helped him put it on, "you're a good boy."

Linda and Vince stood behind her watching her, "Steph, please just hang on a minute."

Spinning around she angrily glared at her parents, "I don't have time."

Yanking the door open she pushed Alex gently out of the door towards the car before slamming the door behind her scaring Alex slightly causing him to jump and whimper. Quickly she bent down and scooped him up into her arms and kissed his cheek, "Mommy's sorry."

Walking to the car she opened the door and strapped him in before getting in herself and driving home.

Paul changed out of his suit and into jeans and a t-shirt before he started to pack his things into a suitcase making sure he packed his phone charger. It didn't take him long to pack everything up and soon he was dragging the bags down the stairs.

Once the bags were at the bottom of the stairs he walked into the kitchen and laughed at the sight that greeted him, Lucy had her dinner all over her face and in her hair, "did you feed her or just put her face in the bowl Shawn?"

Shawn pouted, "that's not fair, it's not my fault she's fidgety."

"She's a baby, of course she is. Did you never feed Cam when he was this age?"

Looking up at his friend Shawn glared at him, "no I didn't." Turning to Lucy he pouted, "your Daddy is being mean to me."

Lucy's only reaction was to laugh and slam her hands on the tray.

Paul laughed, "my baby girl agrees with me. Everything's ready Shawn when you are."

Shawn looked at Patricia pleadingly who just laughed, "don't worry, we will finish up here and give her a quick bath before you guys come back so you can take here back to Stephanie's with you."

Paul smiled and quickly walked over to his Mom and kissed her cheek, "thank you, I love you."

He then walked over to Lucy and kissed the top of her head, "Daddy loves you and will be back soon."

Pushing Shawn towards the door the two started to take things out to their cars to pack them.

Stephanie sighed heavily as she pulled into the driveway at home and turned off the engine, it felt so good to be home.

Climbing out of the car she walked around the other side to get Alex out and as she turned around after putting him on the floor she spotted a figure lurking in the shadows so quickly slamming the car door shut and locking it she hurried Alex to the front door opening it before almost pushing him inside and shutting the door locking it behind her.


	52. Chapter 52

As Paul pulled up outside of Stephanie's place he laughed seeing Alex stood in the living room window so he waved at him and watched him wave back before he left the window.

Climbing out of the car he slammed the door shut walking around the back opening the trunk of his car as Shawn did the same.

Stephanie was getting some snacks ready for Paul and Shawn when she heard Alex's scream from the lounge, walking towards the kitchen door she was met by the little boy who immediately grabbed her hand and pulled her towards the front door standing there impatiently as she unlocked it. Slowly opening the door she tried to hold him back but he slipped through and went running outside.

Paul was about to get a couple of bags out when he heard the front door opened and turned his head to see Alex run out of the house towards him, "Paauull!".

Alex fell down the front steps in his haste to get to Paul causing all three adults to rush towards the little boy who was now laying on the ground crying.

Reaching the little boy first Paul picked him up from the floor and held him close giving him a cuddle, "shhh, it's okay."

Slowly standing up as Stephanie walked closer he went to pass the little boy to his Mom but he just kept a tight grip on his neck so Paul pulled him closer again as Stephanie rubbed his back.

Once the little boys sobs died down Paul set him on the front steps and pulled up his trousers checking out his knees, "okay they're a little scraped but you'll be okay."

Alex just nodded his head wiping at his cheeks before turning to his Mom and reaching his arms out towards her.

Bending down she scooped him up into her arms before standing back up, "snacks are in the kitchen when you want them. I'm going to start on Alex's dinner so let me know if you want anything."

Both men nodded and watched as she walked back inside as they started to unload everything.

Once the first load was in the house Shawn and Paul stopped for a minute to have snacks before they headed back to Paul's for the rest of the stuff and to pick up Lucy.

Once Paul and Shawn left Stephanie immediately locked the front door again before going back to the kitchen to finish up Alex's dinner.

Arriving back at Paul's he opened the front door to be greeted by the sounds of his daughters cries, "oh no, not another one."

Following the sound of the cries upstairs he found his parents in the nursery trying to dress her and get her to calm down, walking over to them he stood where Lucy could see him, "so what's all of the fuss about?"

Seeing her Father Lucy immediately quietened down and reached for him. Chuckling Paul picked up the half dressed little girl and gave her a cuddle, "you just wanted your Daddy huh? How about we finish getting you dressed so we can get you over to Stephanie's and to bed?"

Gently he lay her back down and finished getting her dressed quickly before picking her back up, "let's go and watch Uncle Shawn do all of the work because I can't have my little girl crying because she wants me."

Walking down the stairs closely followed by his parents he smiled at Shawn, "you're going to have to pack both vehicles as Lucy wants me."

Playfully Shawn rolled his eyes, "what you really mean is that you can't be bothered to do any more work and are just using her as an excuse. I knew this was coming which is why I've already packed my truck and just need your keys to do yours too."

Paul smiled at Shawn, "thanks dude." He then tossed him his keys before going off in search of Lucy's coat.

Once he found her coat he put it on her before strapping her in the car seat ready to get back to Stephanie's.

Allowing his parents to say a quick goodbye he then headed out to the car and strapped Lucy in as Shawn packed the last bag into the trunk before shutting it.

Once the trunk was shut both men climbed into their vehicles and headed back to Stephanie's.

Arriving at Stephanie's Paul climbed out of the car, "Shawn I know you want to get back to Cam and Rebecca but I need to get Lucy into bed. Can you hang on two minutes and let me see if Steph will put Lucy to bed and then I'll help you unpack your truck and I'll do my car after."

Shawn just nodded as Paul undid the seatbelt holding the carrier in before he carried it to the front door.

Upon reaching the door Paul tried to turn the handle to get in but he realised it was locked. Knocking gently on the door he didn't get why she had locked the door knowing they were going to be back soon, he hadn't seen Luke around and Steph hadn't said anything.

Hearing the knocking on the door Stephanie left Alex eating his dinner before walking to the front door, slowly unlocking the door she opened it slightly to see who was there relieved when she saw it was Paul allowing the door to open fully, "welcome back."

He smiled at her, "thanks. Can you do me a favour and put Lucy to bed please? I want to empty Shawn's truck so he can go home."

Smiling she reached for the carrier, "sure I can, it would be my pleasure. I'll take her up now in a minute."

Passing the carrier to Stephanie he smiled softly before turning on his heel and going back to Shawn.

As soon as she had the carrier Stephanie walked back to the kitchen just as Alex finished up his dinner, "do you want to help me put Lucy to bed before your bath?"

Alex lifted his head looking at his Mom he shrugged, "kay."

She smiled before ushering him out of the kitchen and up the stairs to the nursery.

Walking into the nursery she placed the carrier on the floor next to the crib before she bent down and started to undo the straps, "let's get you into bed little lady."

Alex stood there patiently watching as his Mom took Lucy out of the carrier and took her coat off before he took her over to the rocking chair and sat down, "that's not her bed."

She laughed softly at her son, "I know baby but unlike you little babies need to be gently rocked, soothed and comforted so they fall asleep."

Walking over to them he gently touched the little girls head, "hows come?"

"They just do really, it's complicated."

Shrugging the little boy toddled out of the room.

Having looked down at Lucy Stephanie lifted her head briefly to see why Alex had suddenly gone quiet only to notice he wasn't around, "Alex?" She tried to be as quiet as possible but the panic started to set in.

Just as she was about to get up and go and look for him he came toddling back into the room carrying one of his teddy bears, "I thoughts she'd like it."

She smiled softly at her son, "isn't that one of your favourites?"

He nodded his head, "buts Looey needs it more."

Stephanie could only watch silently as he gently placed the teddy on Lucy's chest.

Slowly getting up from her seat she walked over to the crib and gently lay Lucy down placing the teddy in the bottom corner of the crib before she pulled the blanket up around her and then lifted the side of the crib back up so she was safe, "okay Alex, time for your bath."

Turning the baby monitor on she grabbed one before quietly ushering Alex out of the room before pulling the door to behind her.

Outside Paul and Shawn were taking all of the bags out of his truck and taking them inside the house.

As soon as Paul had taken the last bag out Shawn slammed the trunk shut before he leant on the truck, "so do you think you did the right thing?"

Lifting his head Paul looked at him oddly, "the right thing? With what exactly?"

Shaking his head Shawn motioned to the house, "this, moving in with her."

Paul shrugged, "ask me in a few days if she hasn't killed me or I'm not in jail for killing somebody else."

Shawn laughed, "try not to do that. If you need anything at all just call okay?"

"I will Shawn. Thank you for everything and I'll see you in work."

Nodding Shawn walked around his truck and climbed in the drivers side before starting the engine and leaving.

As soon as Shawn was out of sight Paul walked inside the house with the final bags and shut the door firmly behind him locking it tightly before he set about organising the bags and boxes at the bottom of the stairs ready to just put away as soon as he had checked on Lucy.


	53. Chapter 53

Paul spent an hour putting away all of the bags and boxes whilst Stephanie cooked dinner before they sat down to eat together.

Sitting down at the table opposite her Paul couldn't help but admire her beauty and thank his lucky stars, "you're beautiful, you know that right?"

She blushed, "you're just saying that."

Laughing he shook his head, "trust me I'm not. I don't feel like I have ever told you how beautiful I think you are and I just thought I would take this opportunity."

With a straight face she was quick to respond, "suck up."

Paul frowned slightly taken aback by how she was taking it and the way she was reacting to it, "I'm sorry?"

Sighing heavily Stephanie looked at him apologetically, "no I am, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been rude to you, I'm just not used to being told I'm beautiful and it not to be followed by an insult or a hit of some form."

Shaking his head he reached across the table for her hand gently gripping it so as not to push her too far, "I didn't realise, I'm sorry. Don't worry about it though because you weren't rude to me, just a little abrupt." Deciding to quickly change the subject he decided to bring up the teddy, "so um when I checked on Lucy she had a teddy in the crib with her, where did it come from?"

She laughed softly, "oh yeah that's one of Alex's teddies. He asked why I was cuddling her before she fell asleep and I said it was because she needed comfort and so he gave her that to try and comfort her too."

"That's cute, your son is amazing."

Stephanie smiled warmly, "thank you."

Silence fell over the two of them as they tucked into their dinner before they got up and washed the dishes and put them all away before they made their way into the lounge to relax a bit before they went to bed.

Paul was first to take a seat on the couch whilst Stephanie turned the TV on before she turned back to him, "so . . . umm where can I sit?"

Looking around him he was confused, "wherever you like? It's your house so you can sit wherever you like."

Shuffling her feet a little on the carpet she looked at him nervously, "I kind of want to cuddle with you on the couch."

Sitting himself up on the couch a little he patted the couch beside him, "I'd like it too."

Smiling softly she walked over to the couch and sat down heavily next to him before she tucked her legs up beneath her and cuddled into his side.

After a few hours of watching TV cuddled up on the couch together they both headed up to bed.

The next morning the house was full of activity as both parents tried to feed, clothe and get their children and themselves ready for the day ahead.

After a few near collisions in the kitchen soon everybody was ready to head out the door.

Bending down Paul was strapping Lucy into her carrier ready to meet up with his parents when Alex appeared by his side, "can I help you Alex?"

Alex held the teddy he had given to Lucy out to Paul the night before, "yous forgot this."

Taking the teddy from him he smiled softly, "I'm sorry about that. Thank you Alex."

Placing the teddy on the top of the diaper bag he ruffled the little boys hair before Alex went running back to Stephanie and Paul went back to finishing strapping Lucy in.

Stephanie sighed softly when Alex ran back to her, "will you please stand still and put your coat on so we can leave?"

Holding out the coat to the little boy she helped him put it on before she did it up and then grabbed her bag, "come on, we need to get going before Mommy is late for work."

Alex obediently followed Stephanie towards the door and waited quietly as she picked up her keys before she unlocked the door opening it just as Paul came up behind her with Lucy.

Opening the door wide Stephanie stepped aside to let Paul out first, "I'll see you at work okay?"

Smiling softly Paul nodded, "you can bet on it. I will see you tonight Alex so be a good boy for your Grandma and Grandpa okay?"

Nodding his head Alex waved at Paul, "bye!"

Stephanie chuckled as she shut and locked the front door, "come on."

Walking to the car she opened the door and helped Alex into his car seat before she climbed into the drivers seat and started the car.

Pulling up at the park Paul smiled seeing his parents there waiting for them, "looks like your Grandparents missed you Lucy."

Climbing out of the car he went around the other side and undid the car seat before he picked up her diaper bag and slung it over his shoulder as he lifted the car seat out of the car and turned around before slamming the door shut behind him, "Hey."

Patricia smiled at her son, "good morning. How are you two this morning?"

Nodding his head he smiled, "we are good thanks. Lucy slept well so shouldn't be too cranky for you today. There's a new teddy in the diaper bag that is Alex's which he gave to Lucy to comfort her so make sure that goes back in the diaper bag tonight please."

"Of course we can. Any other special instructions?"

Shaking his head he handed over the carrier and diaper bag, "nothing out of the ordinary no. If anybody strange turns up tell them nothing and don't let them in."

Patricia looked at her son oddly, "are you expecting anybody?"

He sighed, "not really but taking this step by moving in with Steph I can't help just worry a little that Lucy and you will be targeted as a way to get to Stephanie so I just want to be certain."

Paul Snr stepped forward, "son don't worry, Lucy is our main priority and we won't do anything to put her in harms way so just go and have a good day at work."

Almost reluctantly he nodded his head, "call me if you need anything."

Bending down he kissed the top of Lucy's head, "be a good girl."

Slowly he walked back around his car and got back in the drivers side before starting the car and heading off to work.

Unbuckling Alex's car seat Stephanie contemplated just letting him go to the door himself and she waited in the car so they couldn't give her the third degree but she knew it wouldn't work.

Reluctantly she shut the car door after putting Alex on the floor and walked him to the front door allowing him to knock the door himself.

As the door opened to reveal her Mom she felt her stomach drop, "I'll pick Alex up after work tonight. Be a good boy Alex."

She bent down and kissed the little boys head and gave him a quick hug before releasing him to run into the house and then turning to leave but as she did she felt a hand on her arm, "Stephanie please hold on a second."

Sighing she turned back to face her Mom, "what now?"

Linda frowned seeing the woman before her it was not her daughter, "you know what we said last night was only because we care right? After seeing and hearing about what he put you through last time the last thing we honestly and truthfully want is for him to come back into your life and hurt you like that all over again and with there being Alex as well we don't want him to hurt him either. The thought of losing either of you kills us, please understand that we just want you to be honest with us."

Stephanie clenched her jaw and blinked a few tears to clear her vision, "I have to go, I will see you tonight."

With that she turned around and rushed back to her car before speeding off to get out of there.

Linda was left in the doorway watching as her car sped away, deep down she knew that Luke was back on the scene but she just needed to hear Stephanie say it.


	54. Chapter 54

Stephanie pulled into her space at work and turned off the engine before resting her head back on the headrest of her seat.

Slowly she opened her car door before climbing out slamming it shut behind her before retrieving her things from the back seat locking the doors before heading over to the elevator to go to her office.

Paul had arrived at work to be greeted by Shawn, "well somebody is here early. I thought living with the boss would have its perks."

Rolling his eyes Paul playfully brushed past Shawn, "oh yeah it has its perks alright, I will never be late for work."

Shawn laughing and got in step with Paul, "how was the first night?"

Nodding Paul thought back to it and smiled, "it was good thanks. No drama so it was quite pleasant. However saying that this morning was fun, we nearly had multiple collisions in the kitchen trying to get ready."

Reaching the office Shawn stepped back allowing Paul to walk in first before he took a seat in front of his desk as he had a few minutes before he had to be at work himself, "at least you all got out of the house safe."

Paul laughed, "that is always a positive."

Shawn was about to respond when Stephanie came breezing into the office behind him, "morning Steph. Don't worry, I'm not stalking you."

Putting a brave face on as she walked off the elevator Stephanie headed towards her office. Walking through the door she stopped seeing Shawn sat in front of the desk and was about to speak to Shawn when he spoke first.

As she listened to the words come out of his mouth she was taken back to what her Mom had said to her and feeling her brave front crumble she walked straight through to her office swinging the door shut behind her wincing as it slammed before she took a seat at her desk and rested her head in her hands as a solitary tear ran down her cheek.

The two men could only watch on as Stephanie breezed silently into her office leaving them to mirror each others facial expression.

Shawn was the first of the two to talk, "so, umm what just happened?"

Paul looked between the door and Shawn, "I have no idea but I'm going to find out."

Standing up Shawn nodded his head, "sure, call me if there are any problems."

"Will do, thanks Shawn."

Paul then got up and walked around the desk before walking over to Stephanie's office door and knocking gently waiting for an answer as Shawn waved walking out of the door.

Stephanie heard the knock at the door but she didn't want to be bothered, she just wanted to be left alone so ignored it and hoped whoever it was went away.

Paul wasn't to be deterred though and just pushed the door open slightly so he could slip inside then shut it quietly behind him before sneaking over to the desk and perching on the edge of it before putting a hand on her back lightly, "care to tell me what's going on?"

Shaking her head she just moved her head from her hands to rest on his thigh allowing him to stroke her hair gently, "talk to me Steph, it'll make you feel better."

Lifting her head she looked him deep in the eyes, "nothing will make me feel better today."

Standing up she walked over to the windows and started pacing in front of them as he turned to look at her. Before he spoke Stephanie started to talk again, "I know she didn't mean to but she made me feel guilty, she made me feel like such a failure as a daughter and as a mother."

Paul stood up and took a few small steps towards her, "Steph just relax, I'm sure she didn't mean it."

It was as if she hadn't even heard though as she just kept talking, "I want to tell them the truth, I want to get it all out in the open but I don't know how to say it. She makes it so hard by jumping to conclusions and talking before I finish that it gets me so annoyed and so frustrated I end up unable to tell them because my anger at that takes over. Why is it so hard to just say that Luke is back in the picture?"

Stepping behind her as she turned to stare out of the window he wrapped his arms loosely around her waist from behind, "just take a deep breath and relax. I'm sure your Mom didn't mean anything by it because you are a fantastic Mother to Alex and he couldn't ask for anybody better."

Turning around in his arms she played with the lapels of his jacket, "you're just saying that because you're my boyfriend."

He couldn't help himself and his face broke out into a broad grin hearing her say the word 'boyfriend' which just confused her, "what the hell is so amusing about that?"

Biting down on his lip he averted his gaze to the floor, "you called me your boyfriend."

Tilting her head to the side she looked at him oddly, "so me calling you my boyfriend made you this happy?"

Nodding his head he took a small step back not sure if he'd done something wrong, "that would be correct."

Stepping forward and closing the gap between them again she wrapped her arms around his neck pulling him down a little before pressing a soft kiss to his lips, "your unbelievable cuteness has relaxed me a little so thank you, I'm still worried about it all though."

Wrapping his arms back around her waist he kissed the top of her head, "I know which is why I am even more convinced you need to just get tough and tell them to be quiet as you want to speak and just get it out."

"You clearly don't know my parents well, the only time they would be completely quiet is if you tied them up and gagged them."

Laughing softly he smirked, "that could always be arranged."

Slapping his chest gently she shook her head, "now now, that is not very nice. The short term solution is just to avoid them."

"And you are going to do this how? They watch Alex for you so it is impossible for you not to see them twice a day."

Pulling back slightly she tilted her head down slightly before lifting just her eyes to look at him with a pout on her face, "you could do it for me, please?"

"No, no way Steph." He shook his head adamant that he wasn't going to let her avoid her parents, "I am not going to allow you to avoid them."

"Please Paul, just for tonight. I will pick Lucy up from your parents and you can get Alex from mine and then all will be right with the world."

Raising his eyebrow he looked at her curiously, "all will be right with the world?"

As much as she was hoping he would tell her parents about Luke she wasn't going to tell him that, "yeah. I avoid my parents, Alex sees you, I see Lucy and everything is right with the world. Please Paul."

She pouted even more to tug even further on his heart strings and nearly jumped for joy when he let out a heavy sigh, "okay okay. Just this one time I will pick Alex up for you."

Hugging him tightly she smiled genuinely, "thank you, that's taken a load off of my mind."

Paul just nodded, she was soon going to have him wrapped around her little finger, "I should go back to work, I will see you at lunch."

Stephanie nodded, "thank you Paul . . . for everything."

He just smiled and nodded before turning to leave her office allowing her to go back to her desk and take a seat, with any luck her parents would have Luke's appearance confirmed by Paul and she could avoid the third degree.


	55. Chapter 55

As the work day drew to a close Stephanie started to pack things up ready to head home. She had to make sure she wasn't late to pick Lucy up as she knew how important a routine was right now.

Pulling her jacket on she picked up her bag and keys from the desk and walked out of the door, "so do you want to take my car or transfer Alex's seat to your car?"

Lifting his head from his work Paul looked at her strangely, "huh?"

"You said you'd pick Alex up from my parents for me remember? Do you want to just take my car or transfer his car seat to your car?"

Looking at the clock he panicked slightly, "shit I wasn't watching the time. I'll just take your car as it will be quicker. You are insured to drive other cars right?"

She laughed as she watched him try and do ten things at once so they could leave, "yeah I am don't worry."

In what felt like record time he was ready to walk out of the door.

As they reached the car park they swapped keys, as he placed his keys in Stephanie's hand Paul said, "my parents will be waiting at the park that's a few blocks from your house. I genuinely have no idea the name of it and could only give vague directions to it."

Laughing she handed over her keys, "well you're in luck because I know exactly where you're talking about, Alex loves that park. Do you know how to get to my parents from here?"

"Of course. I may not be able to give you directions to places but I do know how to get there myself."

She smiled, "that's always good to hear. I will let you go and I'll see you at home okay?"

He nodded, "sure. I will see you later."

The two separated to go to their cars and head off.

Pulling up outside the park Stephanie smiled seeing Paul's parents just inside the park walking around with Lucy.

Stepping out of the car she locked it before walking into the park to greet them, "good evening."

Turning around both Patricia and Paul Snr. smiled seeing Stephanie stood before them, "well you are certainly not Paul."

Stephanie laughed, "I most certainly am not. We decided to swap and I would pick up Lucy and he'd pick up Alex tonight."

Patricia smiled at her, "well that is fair enough. I'll put Lucy back in her car seat so you can take her home."

Standing there quietly Stephanie watched as Paul Snr. put the car seat on the floor before Patricia bent down and placed Lucy in it before doing the straps up before returning to a standing position allowing Paul Snr. to pick up the car seat again and hand it over to Stephanie with the diaper bag, "there's nothing to report as she's been a very good girl today."

Stephanie smiled softly taking the diaper bag and car seat, "okay well thank you for this and I'm sorry I'm putting you guys out."

Patricia shook her head, "don't be silly. You are not putting us out at all dear, we are proud of our son for standing up for some thing and some one he believes in."

Biting her lip nervously before she smiled politely she wasn't entirely sure what to say, "you should be very proud of your son, he is an amazing man."

Paul Snr. and Patricia were both very proud of the man he had turned in to, "not to blow our own horn but he is, it's very nice of you to say that though so thank you."

"You're welcome." Stephanie then stepped closer to the other two adults and gave them a quick hug, "I'm sure I will be seeing you again soon. Please know that my house is your house, you are welcome over any time to spend time with Lucy."

Patricia smiled warmly, "thank you Stephanie, we appreciate it."

They then all walked back to their cars together.

Stephanie smiled at Lucy as she secured the car seat into the car, "you're so adorable, how could your Mommy have ever left you?"

Pressing a soft kiss to the top of the little girls head she stood back up out of the car and shut the door firmly before she went around the other side and climbed into the drivers seat and headed home.

Arriving outside Stephanie's parents house Paul was nervous, he had no idea how they were going to react to him being here to pick Alex up and whether he would get the third degree from them or not.

Walking to the front door he rang the bell and stood back and waited.

Linda looked at the clock when she heard the bell ring and was impressed to see Stephanie wasn't leaving it as late as possible to pick Alex up tonight in order to avoid the questions. As she opened the door she was surprised to see Paul stood there, "Paul? What are you doing here? Is everything okay?"

He smiled and nodded, "everything is fine, Stephanie and I just thought we would change things up a little and she'd pick up Lucy and I'd pick up Alex."

She didn't have chance to question him just yet as Alex came running out of the lounge having heard his voice, "Paaauuulll."

He ran and collided with his legs hugging them, "miss oo."

Chuckling Paul bent down to the little boys height, "I missed you too buddy. Have you been a good boy for your Grandma and Grandpa?"

Nodding his head Alex looked past Paul for his Mom, "where's Mommy?"

"She's picking up my daughter and is going to meet us at home. Don't you like me picking you up?"

Alex shook his head and attached himself to Paul's neck, "like."

Rubbing the boys back softly before Paul pulled him back softly he smiled at him, "why don't you go and get your coat and we'll head home?"

Nodding his little head Alex ran off to get his coat so he could go and see Stephanie.

As Paul stood up he came face to face with Linda's not so friendly face, "is something wrong?"

"Stephanie is avoiding us isn't she? She doesn't want to answer questions on what is going on does she?"

His eyes widened but he tried to hide it, "uh that's not the case at all."

She narrowed her eyes and looked at him suspiciously, "don't lie for her."

Sighing heavily he decided to be truthful, "okay yeah that is part of it but please don't tell her I said that. I am not at liberty to discuss what is going on but just know both Stephanie and Alex are safe okay?"

Linda was taken aback by his loyalty to her daughter but also being aware that as a parent she was worried, "if you say so. I was going to say this to Stephanie when she came tonight but seeing as you're here I may as well mention it to you."

Before she had chance to mention it Alex came running back coat in hand, "got it."

Laughing Paul bent down and helped him put his coat on before he picked the little boy up in his arms so he could focus on Linda, "sorry about that. What were you going to say?"

She smiled as the little boy lay his head on Paul's shoulder, he clearly adored him, "I was just going to say that my son, his wife and their little boys were coming over on Saturday so I was going to ask if she, and you, wanted to come over? It will give me more chance to get to know you and Shane will have the chance to actually meet you because I know he was quite anxious to do so when I mentioned to him you were living with Stephanie."

Paul knew they had no option but to say yes to this and it would be a good opportunity for Stephanie to tell them all the truth, "we would love to. Is it okay if I bring my daughter or would you prefer it if I got my parents to babysit? Also what time would you like us?"

Shaking her head Linda was shocked by how easy it was to get him to agree, "you can of course bring your daughter. We have a crib set up in one of the spare bedrooms for when the grand kids come over so there will be somewhere for you to lay her down and there will be plenty of pairs of hands to watch over her so she is more than welcome to come too. You can come any time you like really as we were planning to do lunch and dinner and make a real day of it. I think Shane and his family are going to be here from about 11 or so as they're coming from the city."

"Well I will see what Stephanie says but we will be here at some point I'm sure. I'd better get going though and get this little one home and fed ready for bed and to see my daughter. I'll see you Saturday Linda. Say bye to your Grandma Alex."

Alex lifted his head and waved at Linda, "buh bye Gramma."

Linda smiled at them both, "bye you two."

She then watched as Paul turned and walked back to the car before he settled Alex into his car seat and then got into the car and drove away. As soon as the car was out of sight Linda turned and walked back into the house, "I had better call Shane and hope he can come over on Saturday."


	56. Chapter 56

Paul arrived back at Stephanie's with Alex not sure how to approach with her the idea of spending the entire day with her family on Saturday, he knew it wouldn't go down well but how badly she would react was a mystery to him.

Turning off the engine he climbed out of the car before walking around it and letting Alex out, "come on, let's go and see Mommy."

Alex grabbed Paul's hand as he put him on the floor and tugged on it gently, "I hungwy."

Laughing softly Paul quickly locked up the car before the two of them walked to the front door and knocked on it gently.

Sitting happily in the lounge with Lucy Stephanie heard the car doors slam but didn't pay much attention to it until she heard a knock at the door, "looks like Daddy's home Lucy."

Standing up she picked the little girl up and balanced her on her hip before she walked to the front door and opened it a crack before smiling when she saw Paul stood there and she swung the door open wider, "well hello you two."

Alex smiled brightly and let go of Paul's hand and ran the few steps to Stephanie attaching himself to her leg, "miss oo."

Carefully bending down she gave the little boy a hug, "I missed you too baby boy."

Standing back up she ushered him into the house allowing Paul to enter and shut the door before he walked closer to her and kissed Lucy on the top of the head before out of instinct kissing Stephanie's lips quickly, "hey."

Paul only realised his mistake when he saw Stephanie's eyes widen and heard Alex giggle, "you kiss Mommy."

Looking at her alarmed Paul didn't know what to do so he just took Lucy from her and walked past the two of them without uttering a word and went into the kitchen to get her dinner.

Once Paul had walked into the kitchen she looked down at Alex before she led him over to the stairs and took a seat bringing him to sit next to her, "Mommy and Paul are really good friends, he makes me very happy okay? Mommy loves you very much though and you'll always be my number one."

Alex didn't quite understand what she was saying to him, "he makes Gramma happy too."

Her eyebrow shot up and she looked at her son strangely, "what do you mean?"

"He told Gramma we'd see Uncle Shane."

Confused she decided to change the subject because she knew she wouldn't get a straight answer from her son so she would have to wait to tackle Paul about it after, "come on, let's go and get some dinner started."

The little boy nodded, "kay." He then reached out for her to pick him up.

Standing up Stephanie scooped the little boy up in her arms before she carried him to the kitchen to get started on dinner.

Setting Alex in a seat at the table next to Lucy's high chair she went and started on dinner for herself, Paul and Alex.

Paul could feel the tension in the air with Stephanie so he hoped her mood would calm down soon as it was just a kiss. He didn't have chance to talk to her though because he had to finish feeding Lucy before he bathed her and put her to bed whilst Stephanie did the same with Alex.

Once both kids were in bed the adults took a seat on the couch in the lounge. The TV was on in the background playing a show that neither of them was at all interested in as they were preoccupied with their own thoughts.

Paul was the first one wanting to break the silence, "so about the kiss. I'm sorry I did it in front of Alex, I just wasn't thinking and it felt so natural to kiss you after I kissed Lucy."

She nodded her head not really interested in talking about it as she had something else on her mind, "it's fine. Alex told me you told my Mom we'd see Shane."

His face fell when she said that, "oh, he told you. I was going to tell you about it I swear but your Mom invited us all over Saturday for the day because apparently your brother and his family are going to be there and he really wants to meet me. I wanted to talk to you about it or say no but I couldn't without it look suspicious so I just had to say yes. I'm sorry though Steph, I am a terrible liar and couldn't lie my way out of it."

Picking a fight wasn't what she wanted to do but it tended to be a defence mechanism, "secretly you're appreciative of the opportunity to force me to tell my parents about Luke aren't you?"

Shaking his head he couldn't understand why she would think that, "not really no. Sure this will be a great opportunity for you to tell them but even better than that, as far as I'm concerned, is for your family to have a proper chance to meet me as the man who is currently living with their daughter and grandson or sister and nephew."

Glaring at him she moved to sit closer to him before hitting him gently on the shoulder, "I'm meant to be mad at you, stop being all cute."

Laughing softly he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her closer to him tickling her, "never, I will never let you be mad at me."

Squirming in his arms she tried to get away, "urrgghh fine then."

She pouted and watched as he stopped tickling her and looked quite solemn thinking he had genuinely upset her, "I'm sorry."

Giggling she pressed a soft kiss to his lips, "Gotcha."

Moving to sit on the couch properly she snuggled up to him, "I can't wait for my family to get to know you and see how amazing you are, even if we are keeping our actual relationship status quiet."

Wrapping his arms around her he kissed the top of her head, "me too."

The rest of the week passed quietly which unnerved Stephanie a little but she hoped Luke had taken a hint and was leaving her alone but she wasn't going to let her guard down just yet.

Saturday morning arrived too soon for Stephanie as soon she was getting things ready to go over to her parents, "I can't believe you said we'd be there at eleven."

Smiling sheepishly he checked over the contents of Lucy's diaper bag again, "I'm sorry, your Mom just said that was when your brother was going to be there."

"Well couldn't you have said we'd be there at like three?"

Shutting the bag he shook his head and walked over to him wrapping his arms around her waist safe in the knowledge Alex was playing in the play room, "I could have but then that would have been no fun. Just relax, everything will be fine. Anyway, aren't I supposed to be the one that is nervous about this?"

Turning in his arms she placed her hands on his biceps, "you don't know my family."

"There's more to your nerves than just me meeting them properly though isn't there?"

Nodding her head she stared directly at his chest, "I know my Mom is going to go on and on about Luke and asking questions and stuff and I can't just run away today."

Lifting her chin with his finger he smiled softly, "you can't run from it no but I will be there with you and it would be best to tell them the truth. Before you say it, the fact that you haven't seen or heard from him in a few days is no excuse not to tell them."

Playfully she glared at him before pulling out of his arms, "well I guess we should get going so I can face the music."

Paul couldn't help but chuckle at the dramatic way she was talking, "I'll go and get Lucy's car seat."

Walking past her to leave the room he stopped in the doorway and turned back to her, "it will be okay you know, I'll be there with you to make sure they don't go too far with it."

Smiling softly at his retreating figure she counted her blessings, if she didn't have him she would be lost.


	57. Chapter 57

When the car came to a stop outside Stephanie's parents she looked at Paul who smiled reassuringly at her but as she looked between him and the house she lost her nerve, "let's just go home."

Reaching across he put his hand on her thigh and squeezed gently, "we can't do that, we're here now. It'll all be okay because you've got me, Alex and Lucy behind you supporting you."

Pouting she gave him the puppy dog eyes routine that always worked on her parents, "puh-lease."

Laughing softly he shook his head, "nope, not working on me. Come on and let's go before I do give in."

Pretending to glare at him she rolled her eyes, "fine then. For that I'm taking Lucy."

She swung her car door open and climbed out and quickly opened the back door and undid the straps of Lucy's car seat picking her up and holding her close, "you can also get the car seat." She poked her tongue out at him before shifting Lucy in her arms and waiting for him to get Alex out of the car.

Paul pulled the keys out of the ignition before he climbed out of the car shutting his door before opening the back door and helping Alex out of his seat and put him on the floor watching as he ran around the car to his Mom. Shutting the back door Paul walked around the car and unbuckled Lucy's car seat and grabbed her diaper bag from the floor before he shut the door and locked the car, "come on then." Turning around he shook his head to see that they were all half way to the front door already.

What none of them had noticed was Linda watching from the lounge window, in her mind there was something suspicious about their relationship but she didn't know what it was. As they walked towards the door she moved away from the window so they didn't see her.

Reaching the front door Stephanie rang the doorbell before turning to see where Paul was, "hurry up slow poke."

Paul stuck his tongue out at her just as the door opened which caused a raised eyebrow from Linda when she saw it and caused Stephanie to snigger, "hi Mom."

Linda opened the front door to see her daughter and grandson stood there with Lucy in her arms and Paul trailing behind the three of them, "well hello there. Do come in."

She stepped aside letting them inside as she held the door open. As Paul walked through the door she noticed how embarrassed he seemed, "has my daughter stolen your daughter?"

Nodding his head he smiled sheepishly, "it's okay though, I know how much Lucy likes her. Sorry about poking my tongue out when you opened the door, it really wasn't aimed at you."

Chuckling she smiled at him, "it's fine don't worry, I thought you were too polite to do that so I assume it was at my daughter."

Nodding his head he placed the car seat on the floor out of the way, "yes it was but only in a joking manner."

"Well that's more restrained than my son has been at times so I commend you for it. Come in and meet him and his family."

When Stephanie walked past her Mom she took a deep breath before she entered the lounge.

Shane was waiting the appearance of his sister and this new guy that was staying with her as he wanted to grill them both because he was worried about her. When she walked into the room with a baby on her hip he raised her eyebrow, "why did nobody tell me I had a new niece?"

Rolling her eyes at her brother she undid her jacket, "yes of course you do Shane."

Walking over to her he hugged his sister carefully, "you're looking good and happy, it's nice to see."

Alex had gone over to his Grandpa and was cuddling with him on the couch when he heard his Uncle mention Stephanie looked happy and he lifted his head to look at his Uncle, "Paul makes Mommy 'appy."

Paul walked into the room just after that was said which caused all eyes to be trained on him making him incredibly nervous as he looked around the room to see everyone staring at him.

The room was silent with nobody saying a word until Linda broke the silence, "Alex why don't you go and play in the play room with your cousins?"

Alex jumped off of the couch and went run to the play room still wearing his coat until Paul stopped him, "hold up there buddy."

Bending down Paul undid the little boys coat and took it off of him, "now you can go."

Alex smiled at Paul before he ran off leaving all of the adults alone.

Stephanie moved over to the spare couch and took a seat focussing her attention on Lucy and taking her coat off of her whilst Paul remained in the same spot unsure of what to do.

Linda was unaware of what had been said before they entered tried to make Paul feel welcome, "Paul you remember my husband Vince right?"

Vince took it as his cue to stand up so he did so and shook Paul's hand, "it's good to see you again."

Nodding his head Paul smiled, "you too. Thank you for inviting me today."

"It's not a problem, we're happy to have you."

Linda then turned her attention to her son, "I'd also like to introduce you to my son Shane and his wife Marissa."

Paul laughed softly when he looked at Shane properly, "I do believe we have met before but we weren't formerly introduced so it is nice to meet you Shane, I have heard a lot about you."

Shane stood up and shook Paul's hand, "shame the same can't be said for you. I'd never heard about you until my Mom mentioned you."

Stephanie rolled her eyes at her brother, "there's this funny thing called work Shane that's kept me busy, you wouldn't know that though as the closest thing to work you do is getting up from the couch and going to the fridge to get a new beer."

Linda glared at her daughter, "now now Stephanie, is there any need for that? Please just everyone relax and let's enjoy the day."

Paul shrugged his jacket off and went and sat on the couch next to Stephanie and watched as Lucy reached out for him before he took her from Stephanie allowing Stephanie to shrug her jacket off also and sit back down.

As soon as Stephanie had handed Lucy over to Paul Shane started with the questions, "so how do you know Stephanie Paul?"

Lifting his head from where he was focussed on Lucy he looked at Shane, "I work as her PA."

Shane nodded, "uh huh. So how long had you know her before you moved in with her?"

"About a month but I've known her previous PA Shawn for many years."

"Well that makes it all okay for you to have moved in with her after such a short period of time doesn't it?"

Marissa glared at her husband and hit him gently, "calm down will you."

Stephanie looked at Paul and shook her head, "I told you this was a terrible idea."

She then went to get up and leave the room but Paul gripped her wrist, "relax and sit down. I expected this as your brother is only showing concern for you."

Crossing her arms over her chest as she sat back down she frowned, "how can you be so cool with this? He's acting like you're some sort of serial killer."

Paul laughed softly, "to him I may as well be. He's worried about yours and Alex's safety and I totally understand that and am willing and happy to answer all of his questions."

Shane watched the interaction between them with great interest because there was a definite chemistry between them, "so what does your girlfriend think of you living with my sister?"

Turning his attention back to Shane Paul knew he couldn't tell the truth that Stephanie was his girlfriend so he gave the uncomplicated answer, "Lucy's Mother isn't in the picture any more so has absolutely no say in who I live with or where I live."

The lack of him saying his girlfriend didn't go unnoticed by anybody in the room and knowing her family Stephanie looked around the room and saw they had all noticed and were all intrigued by it. Wanting to remove herself from the situation she stood up, "I'm going to get a drink, I'll be right back."

Paul could only watch helplessly as she made a hasty retreat from the room, he wanted to follow her more than anything but knew it would look suspicious as he did so he sat there quietly and focussed on Lucy so he didn't look at her family unsure of how they were reacting to him.

Stephanie's exit from the room only confirmed in her family's minds that there was more to the story between her and Paul than they were being told and it made them even more determined to get the whole story before she went home.


	58. Chapter 58

Stephanie spent a few minutes in the kitchen getting a drink of water and gathering her thoughts together before she rejoined her family in the lounge.

When she did walk back into the room she smiled at Lucy who clapped excitedly upon seeing her re-enter the room, "hello beautiful."

Walking back to her seat she sat down before running her hand over the little girls head, "looks like somebody missed me huh?"

Paul chuckled and placed Lucy on the couch between the two of them and watched as she leant against Stephanie, "I think she likes you more than me."

Picking the little girl up she placed her in her lap but before she had chance to speak Shane jumped in again, "don't you think it is a little irresponsible to allow her to get so attached to my sister when she will be out of her life as soon as you move out again."

Stephanie's mouth fell open as she heard her brother say those things, "how can you say that Shane? You don't even know anything about mine and Paul's relationship so how can you say as soon as he moves out I will be out of Lucy's life?"

Feeling the need to try and diffuse the situation Marissa jumped in, "is it possible that I can have a cuddle with the little cutie please? I miss my kids being babies."

Stephanie looked at Paul who nodded, "fine with me."

Shane rolled his eyes, "if you can pry her out of my sisters hands."

Standing up Stephanie walked over to Marissa and placed her carefully in her arms, "there you go."

Turning around she went to walk back to her seat but as she got halfway there the doorbell rang, "seeing as I'm up I may aswell get that."

Walking out of the lounge again she went to the front door opening it slightly and sighing heavily the minute she saw who was on the other side, "Luke, what the hell do you want now?"

Luke frowned but was hopeful as she hadn't tried to slam the door in his face yet, "I came to talk to you. I haven't heard from you in regards to us continuing our relationship and how you want to go about it so I thought I'd swing by your parents and we could talk about it now and you could tell them about us."

Back in the lounge everyone was talking but Paul was a little distracted because Stephanie seemed to be taking a while and he was starting to get a bad feeling, "I'm just going to check on Steph a second, I'll be right back."

Getting up from his seat he went to walk out of the room but was stopped by Vince's voice, "why are you so worried about her? She's only answering the door and it's probably just an old family friend or something."

Turning his head to look at Vince he couldn't help the words that next came out of his mouth, "that's what I'm afraid of."

Without allowing anybody to say anything else Paul walked out of the lounge and slowly walked towards the front door eavesdropping on the conversation to see whether he needed to interrupt or not.

As soon as Paul left the room Shane looked at his Father, "I **knew** something was going on with Stephanie, we just need to get confirmation on what exactly it is."

Stephanie stood staring at Luke not entirely sure what was going on because she had not said a thing about getting back with him, "what are you talking about? I told you we were done for good, why would I want to tell my family we're back together Luke?"

Hearing Luke's name Paul clenched his fists and took a deep breath before he relaxed and walked over to Stephanie slipping an arm around her waist, "what's taking so long baby?" Pretending like he had just noticed Luke he lifted his head, "oh hi Steve, I see you finally caught up with Steph then."

Stephanie turned her head and looked at Paul oddly, "uh no, this is Luke. Do you remember how I told you about him?"

Pretending like he had made a mistake Paul put a look of shame on his face, "oh my bad. I'm sorry **Luke**__I must have got you mixed up with somebody else."

Waving his hand dismissively Luke backed away from the door, "it's fine. I've got to go, I'll see you around Steph."

Turning around he practically raced off down the drive away from the house.

As soon as Luke left Stephanie shut the door before turning around to face Paul still leaning against it, she had a few questions to ask him.

Seeing Stephanie's face as she turned to look at him Paul quickly turned away, "I need to check on Lucy."

Walking quickly towards the lounge he was stopped when she grabbed his arm, "oh no you don't. Marissa has Lucy and you don't have a hope in hell of getting her back any time soon so do yourself a favour and come with me to the kitchen so we can have a little chat."

Sighing wearily Paul nodded his head before walking past the lounge and to the kitchen.

From where they were sat Linda and Vince could see the exchange at the doorway even if they couldn't hear what was being said they could see the tension. Looking at each other they weren't sure what was going on.

Shane noticed the look between his parents, "what's going on?"

Before Vince could say anything Linda answered for them both, "Stephanie and Paul just had a tense exchange at the doorway and now they've gone to the kitchen together but it looked like Paul wanted to come in here."

Confused by the behaviour of his sister and her _friend_ Shane stood up, "I'm going to go and check on the kids a minute and if I happen to enter the kitchen at some point then so be it."

Before anybody could stop him Shane had left the room.

As soon as they were in the kitchen Stephanie shut the door firmly before walking over to lean on the worktop and stare at Paul, "so what's going on? Why did you call Luke Steve when you knew full well who he was?"

Trying to play it off he simply said, "I'm getting old, my memory isn't what it used to be."

Hands on her hips and cocking her head to the side she looked at him like he was crazy, "do I look stupid? I don't believe a word you just said, so care to tell me the truth before I ring Shawn and find out from him?"

"Shawn doesn't know anything, he wouldn't be able to tell you a thing."

Laughing she pushed herself off of the worktop, "we'll soon find out won't we?" She then walked towards the door but stopped when he gripped her arm, "yes?"

Knowing he was backed into a corner and had no choice but to tell her the truth he kept a loose grip on her arm, "look at me please."

Slowly turning around she looked him in the eyes, "I'm looking at you."

Taking hold of both of her hands loosely he took a deep breath before he began, "the reason I said Steve when I saw Luke is because that was the name he introduced himself to me as. Do you remember that big party my Mom held in honour of me having a job?"

Nodding slowly it was all coming back to her, "that's why your neighbour came in isn't it?"

"Yeah it was. Before that he'd knocked the door introducing himself as Steve and asked to speak to you but I said it was a family party and as I didn't know him he couldn't come in but I would tell you he dropped by and you could contact him. He apparently just sat in his car as my neighbour came in as she was frightened by his presence and I got the cops to remove him."

Dropping her head she looked at the floor, "it's all my fault, if it wasn't for me your neighbour wouldn't have been frightened."

Dropping her one hand and hooking his finger under her chin he lifted it up so she was looking back at his face, "it's not your fault, nothing is your fault."

Stroking her cheek gently with his thumb he watched as she tilted her face towards his hand, "I lo . . ."

Shane had checked on all of the children and they were fine playing happily together so he then went to check on his sister but when he opened the kitchen door he was surprised to see the scene in front of him, "am I interrupting?"

Quickly breaking apart Stephanie and Paul moved away from each other, "no, not at all."

Looking between the two of them Shane could see how nervous they were after being caught, "you're dating aren't you?"

Stephanie was quick to shake her head, "no, of course not. Why would you think we're dating?"

"Gee I don't know, maybe because he had his hand on your cheek and that was either he was hitting you, it was out of comfort or because he really really likes you and judging by the way he looks at you I'd say the last one is at least part of it and judging by the way you've been acting lately I'd say the second one is also part of it."

Paul looked at Stephanie pleadingly, "Steph please tell the truth, I'm worried that all of these secrets are going to kill you."

Shane was impressed by Paul's behaviour, "listen to the man Steph. I may have been hard on him but he has a smart head on his shoulders and as much as it pains me to say this he has a good point."

Looking between the two men all she could do was sigh, having Paul and her Mom on her back was bad enough but now Shane too was just too much, "fine, I'll tell everyone."

Paul breathed a sigh of relief and muttered, "thank God."

Grabbing hold of Paul's hand Stephanie looked at him seriously, "you're going to protect me."

Without thinking he simply said, "always."

They walked past Shane hand in hand leaving him stood there a bit dumbfounded before he turned and followed them back to the lounge.


	59. Chapter 59

All eyes were on Stephanie and Paul as they entered the lounge again, "so who was at the door?"

Shane walked back in and took a seat next to his wife again wrapping an arm around her shoulder feeling the need to hold her as he waited to hear what was going on.

Squeezing Paul's hand tightly that she was still holding she took a deep breath and prepared for the explosion, "it was Luke."

Cowering into Paul she winced when both her Father and brother practically screamed, "Luke?"

Both males were now stood up looking extremely pissed off and ready to go and hurt someone which just made Stephanie want to cry, turning to Paul she tried to fight back the tears, "I told you it was a bad idea."

Wrapping his arm around her shoulder he didn't care what her family thought as he pulled her closer to him and kissed the top of her head and whispered, "shh baby it's okay, they'll calm down."

Seeing the distress Stephanie was in both Marissa and Linda grabbed their respective husbands arms and hissed, "sit down."

Shane reluctantly sat down knowing his wife was still holding Lucy but Vince took a couple more yanks on his arm before he sat down.

After a few minutes of silence Shane took a deep breath, "so how long has he been back in the picture?"

Reluctantly Stephanie turned back to her family but remained close to Paul, "a few months."

Everybody else in the room but Paul was about to explode at that news but stopped abruptly when they saw all of the kids wandering in.

Shane's two sons walked over to him, "Daddy we're thirsty."

Alex watched his cousins and then turned to talk to his Dad but he didn't have a Daddy to ask, "I hungwy."

Stephanie picked the little boy up and sat him in her lap holding him close, "well I'm hungry too so we should go and raid Grandma and Grandpa's fridge."

Vince frowned, "we're not done here."

Shaking her head Linda put her hand up to her husband to stop him from talking because she recognised that her daughter needed some space and the men needed time to cool off, "I think now is a good time to take a break and have some lunch. There are a couple of trays of sandwiches already prepared in the fridge so we will eat those now and I will cook this evening."

Taking that as his cue Paul stood up and walked over to Marissa, "I'll take Lucy and go and feed her if you don't mind."

Shane butted in, "good luck with that. She's currently baby obsessed."

Marissa glared at her husband, "well maybe if you'd agree to try for a little girl I wouldn't be."

Not wanting to be in the middle of a domestic Paul put his hands up in defence, "it's fine. You can feed her, I don't mind."

Making a hasty exit from the room he went to get Lucy's lunch sorted.

Stephanie had followed her Mom to the kitchen leaving Alex happily sitting with Vince so she could help set out the sandwiches.

When the two women were alone in the kitchen Linda turned to her daughter, "so Luke is why you've been acting strangely lately?"

Nodding her head she didn't verbally respond as she wasn't ready to talk about it so seeing Paul walk into the kitchen she was relieved.

Linda on the other hand was not pleased to see him, "you do know she can be left alone for five minutes right?"

Looking at her oddly Paul didn't get what she meant, "excuse me? I came to sort out Lucy's lunch, I didn't realise I was interrupting."

Stephanie glared at her Mom, "leave him alone okay?"

Turning to Paul Stephanie mouthed 'sorry' and he just shrugged, he wasn't bothered by the little bit of attitude he had received.

Soon all of the kids were sat down at the table eating along with most of the adults with only Stephanie and Paul hanging back finishing a few things off, "can I speak with you outside please Paul?"

Finishing off what he was doing he nodded and followed her as she led him outside and sat down on the bench so he joined her, "what's on your mind?"

Sighing softly she silently looked over the garden before she turned to him, "I'm scared to tell them exactly how much contact Luke has had, you saw how my Dad and Shane reacted just from knowing he was back in the picture."

Resting his hand on the back of the bench not wanting to push it he smiled sympathetically, "I totally understand where you're coming from, believe me I do, but it's better to just get it all out there and be done with it."

With her hand she reached up to link her fingers with the hand resting on the bench, "even telling them we're together?"

Moving a little closer to her he moved his arm to rest on her shoulder keeping a hold on her hand, "I would be honoured if you're ready to tell them we're together."

Resting her head on his shoulder she relished the quietness and the feeling of being so close to him, "you don't mind skipping lunch do you?"

Chuckling he pressed a soft kiss to the top of her head, "for you? Anything."

Back in the dining room the two of them were conspicuous by their absence but none of the other adults wanted to mention it in front of Alex.

Alex had noticed that his Mom wasn't there and neither was Paul so as soon as he had finished his sandwiches he slid out of his chair and padded out of the room to go and find them.

Walking into the kitchen he noticed the back door was open slightly so immediately went over to it and pulled it open wider, spotting his Mom and Paul in the distance he walked out of the door and headed over to them.

Having closed her eyes Stephanie was relaxing in the silence and in Paul's embrace so nearly jumped out of her skin when Paul said, "hello buddy."

Opening her eyes and lifting her head she frowned seeing Alex stood there, "how did you get out here?"

Pointing back to the back door he simply said, "door."

Reaching out to his Mom he silently asked to be picked up and she obliged sitting up properly and dropping Paul's hand she picked the little boy up and sat him between them, "are you having fun today?"

Nodding his head Alex looked up at his Mom seriously, "where's my Daddy?"

Her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open, that had been the last words she had expected to come out of his mouth, "uh . . . I . . ."

Seeing she was struggling to come up with an excuse Paul decided to jump in, "your Father wasn't a nice man so your Mommy had to get away to protect you."

Stephanie smiled gratefully at Paul before she turned her attention back to Alex, "sometimes adults do things you won't understand until you're older but you've always got Paul."

Alex seemed satisfied with that answer and relaxed on the bench between them.

Turning to speak with Alex Linda was shocked when she noticed he wasn't there, "where did Alex go?"

Everyone just shrugged having not noticed him leave the room so Linda and Shane got up to look for him.

Walking into the playroom they saw he wasn't there so they went to the kitchen to see if he was trying to get more food when they noticed the door was open and both looked at each other slightly panicked and rushed to the door to look for him only to see him sat on the bench with Stephanie and Paul.

Breathing a sigh of relief Linda took a minute to take in the scene before her, "she really likes him doesn't she?"

Not even needing clarification Shane nodded, "I think she does yeah and he seems to like her just as much."

As she watched her daughter sit there seemingly so relaxed she couldn't help worry about Alex but her worries soon disappeared when she heard the little boys laughter filter across the garden as Paul tickled him, "I think she's finally got the family she's always dreamt of."

Shane couldn't help but frown a little, "let's just hope he's not another Luke."

Feeling eyes on them Stephanie turned her head to look back at the house and frowned a little seeing her Mom and brother in the doorway, "looks like our peace is shattered. Let's go back inside huh Alex?"

Stephanie and Paul stood up to go back inside but Alex stayed where he was. When the adults turned to look at him he just reached out his arms to be carried so Stephanie stepped forward to pick him up, "no, I wants Paul."

Paul rubbed her shoulder gently noticing how her face fell, "don't take it personally."

He then went and picked the little boy up and carried him back inside setting him down on the floor when his cousins called his name to go and play with them.

As soon as Alex was out of the room Paul looked around, "where's Lucy?"

Just as he said that Marissa walked back in the room, "I just put her down for a nap as she was really sleepy, I hope that's okay."

Nodding his head Paul smiled softly, "thank you."

Marissa shrugged, "it was my pleasure."

Everyone made their way back into the lounge and sat down with eyes immediately turning back to Stephanie wanting answers from earlier.

Holding Paul's hand tightly as she sat next to him she decided to blurt it all out, "Luke's been back in the picture for a few months and has generally just been following me. For about the past month he has kind of stepped it up and has contacted me directly a few times and has come to my house once and he came here today because he is under the illusion that we're still together even though I've told him in no uncertain terms that we're not."

Linda nodded knowingly, "that's why Paul went rushing over to your house earlier this week isn't it?"

"Yeah it was, it's also why Paul has moved in with me for a bit."

Shane decided to see how honest she was going to be with them, "so what is the status of your relationship with Paul?"


	60. Chapter 60

Everybody sat silently awaiting Stephanie's answer to the burning question of the day, what was her relationship status with Paul?

Stephanie knew the question was coming but it still threw her for a bit of a loop to actually have somebody say it. Turning to look at Paul to make sure he was still happy for her to announce that they were a couple she was happy when he smiled reassuringly at her and squeezed her hand gently.

Turning back to her family she bit her lip nervously, "Paul and I are a couple, he's my boyfriend."

Silence enveloped the room as Stephanie waited for the inevitable explosion of anger from her family but there was still just silence, "uh, aren't you mad?"

Linda sat forward in her seat, "I am mad that you didn't tell anybody about Luke being around again but I'm not that mad about you dating Paul because he seems like a nice man who is willing to do everything in his power to take care of you and Alex. My only real concern is Alex and how he is going to come out of this."

"Mom Alex is my main concern, I know this week it may not seem like it but he is and I want him to be happy which is why he doesn't know and won't know about me and Paul, not until we're really sure anyway."

Shane looked between the two of them, he was happy for his sister but he still had some niggling doubts, "how do you feel about my sister Paul?"

Paul smiled softly at Stephanie before turning to her brother, "I really like her."

Giving Paul a pointed look he pushed him, "and?"

Linda glared at her son, "Shane! Give the poor boy a break, it's his first time meeting the entire family, it is within his rights to not tell us everything."

Stephanie glared at her family, "that implies there is more that he hasn't told you."

He couldn't help but chuckle at her saying that, "and that implies I've told you everything."

Turning to look at him she pouted, "you've not?"

Dropping her hand he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her a bit closer before tickling her sides, "now that would be telling wouldn't it?"

Laughing and squirming against him she tried tickling him back but didn't get anywhere as she couldn't find his ticklish spots.

Fully aware that they were still around her family he stopped tickling her and went to pull back a little but she quickly moved her hands from his sides to his face, "I really like you too."

He couldn't help but smile softly at her declaration. The moment was broken by Alex who had re-entered the room, "Paaaauuuulll."

Reluctantly pulling back from Stephanie he turned to Alex, "yes Alex?"

"Come pay."

Chuckling he couldn't help but smile that Alex wanted him to play with them, "I would love to."

Marissa spotted the opening for a girly chat, "Alex, how about you take your Uncle Shane and Grandpa too, I'm sure the boys would love to play with them too."

Alex just nodded his head and grabbed Paul's hand tugging on it, "faster."

Paul laughed as he got up from his seat and let Alex drag him towards the door before he quickly turned around and blew Stephanie a kiss before turning his attention back to the little boy and following him to the playroom.

Shane and Vince were following slowly behind Paul and Alex so had seen the kiss Paul had blown Stephanie, Linda may have put a stop to the questioning of Paul but now they were alone with him it wasn't going to stop them interrogating him.

As soon as the boys had left the room Marissa turned to her sister-in-law, "so what's Paul like?"

She was unable to help the smile that crossed her face thinking about him, "he's amazing."

Marissa raised her eyebrow, "he is is he? Aren't you moving a little fast?"

Grabbing the cushion from beside her Stephanie threw it at Marissa, "not like **that**, jeez."

Linda laughed at her daughter, "she's only teasing you. Now the boys aren't here though you can be honest with us about what he's really like and your Dad and brother won't be able to throw a fit."

Kicking her shoes off Stephanie crossed her legs on the couch, "he's just so kind and so lovely, there's really not a lot to say about him that you can't see for yourself. He's a loving Father to Lucy, he's amazing with Alex and he's just everything I could ever want from a guy and more."

"There has to be something bad about him surely. I mean your brother seems like a nice guy on the outside but he's a bit of a slob and terrible in the kitchen."

Shaking her head Stephanie was quick to dismiss that, "he's actually not a slob and is willing and able to cook. Saying this though we've only been together a couple of weeks so it could all change and he might get lazy and annoy me but right now he's just amazing and just so perfect."

Linda could see the signs in her daughter and the way she was talking but she wanted to hear her say the words, "so how much do you like him? Be honest with us here."

Smiling shyly and blushing a little Stephanie shrugged her shoulders, "a bit."

Marissa moved from the couch she was on to sit next to Stephanie, "well I like him a bit too."

Laughing and shaking her head Stephanie decided to change the subject, "so my brother's a slob huh?"

"Oh yes, like you wouldn't believe."

For the first time in a long time Stephanie felt completely relaxed and truly happy as she got all of the gossip on her brother from Marissa.

Alex continued to drag Paul through the house until they reached the playroom, "we's play soldiers, you's wiv me."

Sitting himself down on the floor Paul looked over at the other two boys in the room, "I don't think we've been properly introduced I'm Paul."

The older of the two boys looked at him oddly, "I'm Duncan, this is my brother Caleb. Are you Alex's Dad?"

Shane and Vince walked in just in time to hear Duncan ask the question intrigued by how Paul was going to answer.

Paul was shocked by the question and wasn't sure how to actually answer the question but decided to try his best, "I'm not his biological Father no, not like your Dad is to you."

Vince decided to step in not feeling entirely comfortable with the discussion as he was still wary of Paul, "enough of the chit chat boys, let's play."

Duncan stepped up and instructed everyone what they were doing before the games began.

After a while of playing Paul and Shane were "dead" and had to sit out of the way as the others continued to play so Shane took it as an opportunity to find out more about Paul, "so where's Lucy's Mom?"

Shrugging his shoulders as he watched the boys play Paul wasn't going to hide anything, "your guess is as good as mine, she took off when Lucy was six weeks old."

"Wow that's rough. Where did you live before you moved in with my sister?"

Paul looked over at Shane not sure of where he was going with this, "with my parents. I was left with a lot of debt when Lucy's Mom ran off so I had to sell the house to pay off the debt and give up my job to look after Lucy as she was my main concern at that point in time. Now I have a job I'm saving up to get my own place again."

Shane knew Paul was saying all of the right things but he didn't know if he really meant it, "so Stephanie's isn't just a way for you to get money and get a posh house to live in?"

Looking at him like he was crazy Paul couldn't believe he had actually said that to him, "oh God no. I've only moved in with Stephanie and Alex whilst Luke is around and in the picture and as soon as he is gone I'll move back in with my parents again until I can afford to get somewhere of my own, unless Steph asked me to stay permanently but that is not something I anticipate happening. I understand your concerns for your sister because I have a sister too but I swear I am not going to intentionally hurt her, I love he . . . everything about her."

"You love her?"

Sighing heavily knowing he'd been caught Paul nodded slowly, "yeah I do but you can't tell her, promise me you won't tell her."

Completely ignoring the kids playing Shane looked at Paul seriously ready to rip into him if he had to, "why can't I tell her? What are you trying to hide?"

"I'm not trying to hide anything Shane, well not technically anyway. Yes I love her but after everything that happened with Luke then and is still happening now I don't think she's ready to hear that I love her so I want to wait until I think she's ready to hear it before I tell her."

Shane was surprised by how he felt hearing Paul say that, he could tell he was genuine and he felt a little easier about the whole thing, "I won't tell her then. If you hurt her though I will kill you."

Chuckling softly Paul nodded his head, "I would expect nothing less. I should go and check on Lucy, would you happen to know where Marissa would have put her down?"

Smiling at the other man Shane nodded, "go up the stairs, turn left and take the second door on the left."

"Thanks man."

Pushing himself up from the floor Paul headed for the door just as Vince got "killed" and went and joined Shane, "everything okay son?"

Shane nodded distractedly, "I think it will be."


	61. Chapter 61

Stephanie had been enjoying the girly chat with her Mom and Marissa when she heard Lucy fussing over the monitor, as the boys were still occupied with their game judging by the noise coming from the playroom she decided to check on her and not disturb Paul. Excusing herself she headed upstairs.

As she walked into the guest room that doubled as a nursery it was clear Lucy wasn't a happy little lady judging by the whimpering she could hear and the way she seemed to be thrashing around in the crib.

Scooping the little girl up she quickly realised she needed a diaper change so she got on with that before she dressed the little girl again and picked her up and rested her on her hip before she walked over to the window to look out over the drive, "I always loved this room when I was little, I could sit in the window and watch as people came and went from the house."

She stopped talking when Lucy started to get excited and lean behind Stephanie making it difficult for her to continue to hold her.

Paul followed Shane's directions up the stairs and to the left but he was surprised to see that Stephanie had gotten there before him. He was about to step inside the room when he heard her talking and decided to just lean against the doorway and listen to her.

Turning around Stephanie couldn't help but smile seeing Paul stood in the doorway, "there's your Daddy."

Walking into the room he smiled at his girls, "I guess I was caught huh?"

She nodded her head, "yes you were."

Shifting Lucy a little in her arms to be able to pass her off to Paul she was surprised when he reached for her and Lucy lay her head on her chest causing a pout from him, "well that's not cool Lucy, why did you do that to me?" Running his hand over her head and down her back before he pressed a kiss to the top of her head, "Daddy loves you anyway."

Playfully glaring at him she shook her head, "you'd better love her."

"I do baby, more than anything in this world."

Pressing a soft kiss to the side of Stephanie's head he wrapped an arm around her waist and placed his hand gently on her hip before resting his head on hers, "can we stay up here for a bit just three of us?"

Smiling softly she rubbed Lucy's back, "for a few minutes anyway."

Paul moved away from Stephanie and sat down on the window seat before patting the space in front of him for her to join him.

Deciding to join Paul on the window seat she carefully sat down with Lucy in her arms before shuffling closer to him and swinging her legs around so she could lean back against his chest.

Once she seemed settled he gently looped his arms around her waist being careful of Lucy just holding her gently as Lucy cuddled into her and they looked out over the drive, "today hasn't been too bad has it?"

Tilting her head back to look at him she smiled softly, "no it hasn't. No gloating from you though or you'll be sleeping in the guest room."

"And if I slept in the guest room who would keep you warm tonight?"

She smiled teasingly at him relishing the opportunity to just have some relaxed banter with him, "I don't need you to keep me warm and I don't need you to cuddle with, that's what teddy bears are for."

Pouting and pretending to be hurt he put a hand to his chest, "my heart is breaking, how could you say that to me?"

He pretended to sniffle and wipe at fake tears just to lay it on a bit thicker.

Shaking her head she rolled her eyes at him, "drama queen."

His pout got a little more pronounced, "your words cut like a knife. If you want to make it better you could give me a kiss."

Rolling her eyes she turned away from him again, "in your dreams."

Saying that though she rested her head on his chest and enjoyed the peace and quiet staring out of the window watching as people drove up and down the road going about their business when her eyes settled on a figure hanging about across the road and she sighed softly as it looked to be Luke.

Lifting her head she turned it to the side, "Paul?"

Having gotten distracted thinking about how perfect his life felt right there in that moment he shook his head to rid himself of the cobwebs to focus on what she was saying, "yes?"

Not able to move to kiss his lips because of the way they were both sat she looked at him sweetly, "come a little closer please."

Not hesitating he leaned forward so their faces were almost touching, "this close?"

She didn't verbally respond she just pressed a kiss to his lips.

He was shocked that she kissed him but he wasn't complaining and quickly returned the kiss expecting her to pull away quite quickly but when she didn't he moved his left hand from her waist and wrapped it gently around her neck.

Losing herself in the kiss Stephanie didn't want to pull away and break the moment but she didn't want to give him the wrong idea so slowly pulled away from the kiss before laying her head back on his chest closing her eyes.

When she pulled away from the kiss Paul was left stunned by all that had transpired, "you pulled back?"

Tilting her head back to look at him she was confused, "uh yes? Now isn't the time or the place to continue this and I didn't want to give you the wrong idea."

Paul felt his anger rise slightly, "the wrong idea? What sort of idea did you think I was going to get from a kiss? Steph we've already discussed that neither of us is ready for sex so I'm not going to think from one kiss that you're ready to jump into bed with me."

Neither of them had noticed Marissa appear in the doorway until she cleared her throat, "sorry to interrupt but Alex is asking for you Steph."

Smiling apologetically at Paul Stephanie got up from the window seat before placing Lucy in his arms and walking out of the door.

As Stephanie passed her in the doorway Marissa whispered, "you've got a good one there."

Stephanie just smiled as she headed downstairs followed by Marissa.

After the girls had left Paul shifted Lucy in his arms turning her to face him, "Daddy is in way over his head."

Lucy just giggled at her Daddy and kicked her legs happily.

After spending a few minutes alone with Lucy he headed downstairs with her to spend some more time with Stephanie and her family before they left.

A few hours and one big dinner later and the kids were all laid out exhausted and the adults were all full.

Paul looked between Stephanie and Alex and shook his head, "I think I need to get you two home to bed because you look full to bursting and Alex looks exhausted and then there's Lucy who I need to get home to bed also."

Stephanie laughed softly, "are you going to carry me?"

He shrugged, "if you want me to."

Shane rolled his eyes, "please, don't indulge her laziness, make her walk."

Stephanie pushed herself up from the couch, "oh shut up Shane."

Getting up Paul got Lucy's things ready to head home whilst Stephanie slowly got Alex's things together.

Before long they were ready to head home and were in the doorway saying goodbye to everyone.

After hugs and kisses all around Paul was carrying Alex and Stephanie was carrying Lucy ready to go to the car, "okay we're going to head home."

Linda smiled warmly at her daughter, "it was nice spending time with you all and Paul it was lovely getting to know you, we should do this again sometime."

Nodding Stephanie smiled, "we should. I'll see you Monday Mom. Bye all."

Turning around she walked to the car closely followed by Paul.

Once the kids were settled in the car the adults climbed into the front seats and closed the doors quietly.

Looking at Paul Stephanie smiled softly, "thank you for everything."

He shrugged, "my pleasure."

Leaning across he kissed her softly before he turned to face the front and started the car to head home.


	62. Chapter 62

After spending Sunday at home alone relaxing with the children neither Stephanie nor Paul were ready for Monday to come around again and to get back to work but unfortunately it did and they soon found themselves sat at their desks in work.

When lunchtime rolled around Stephanie was undecided on whether she wanted to go out or stay in but she would decide when she found out what Paul wanted to do.

Paul had had a busy morning but he had loved every minute of it and was relishing the new responsibility that came with the job. He was so wrapped up in his job he didn't even know it was lunchtime until Shawn walked through the door, "Paulie, I'm hungry."

Lifting his head Paul laughed at his friend, "'Paulie'? Since when do you call me 'Paulie'?"

Shawn shrugged, "since I'm hungry and I wanted to see if you wanted to come out to lunch with me."

Paul's face fell at the idea of spending lunchtime away from Stephanie, "uh I can't, I've got to get Steph's lunch but you can come with me and we can grab lunch and bring it back here to eat."

"Works for me. Hurry up though man as I'm starving."

Laughing Paul quickly saved his work before he stood up grabbing his jacket from the back of his chair and walking to Stephanie's open door, "hey, I'm heading out with Shawn to grab some lunch, got any requests?"

Stephanie lifted her head at the sound of Paul's voice, "um not really, I'm quite easy today so just bring back whatever."

"Your wish is my command, we shouldn't be too long."

Turning around he pulled his jacket on as he followed Shawn out of the office.

Continuing with her work whilst she waited for lunch to arrive Stephanie was quite pleased with how much she had gotten through as she had a meeting that was going to last most of the afternoon.

Paul had been gone a while when Stephanie heard movement in the outer part of her office and she could hear hushed voices so she knew it wasn't Paul and Shawn but she wasn't sure who it was so she slowly got up from her seat to investigate.

As she reached the doorway she smiled softly seeing Paul's parents stood there clearly bickering, "can I help you?"

Patricia jumped when she heard the voice behind her and spun around with a hand on her chest to come face to face with Stephanie, "Jesus you scared the living daylights out of me, I thought you were both out for lunch."

Shaking her head Stephanie took a step forward, "no, I'm still here as you can tell. Paul's gone out with Shawn to pick up some lunch and then they'll both be back but you're welcome to stay around and wait for him if you wish."

Patricia sighed softly, "we can't unfortunately, this is literally just a flying visit to drop off Lucy. I know it's not practical but we have to leave town for a few days as my sister has had a nasty fall and is in hospital and I really need to be with her as she's alone. I'm really sorry to do this to you and to dump Lucy on you at work but this is really important for me."

Putting her hand up to politely silence Patricia Stephanie shook her head, "don't worry about it. Family comes first and you need to be with your sister so go, we will work something out for Lucy."

Smiling with relief Patricia hugged Stephanie before she handed over the diaper bag whilst Paul Snr. pushed the buggy closer to Stephanie, "thank you. Tell Paul we'll call later to let him know what is going on."

With that they rushed out of the office leaving Stephanie in charge of Lucy.

Hanging the diaper bag over the handle of the buggy she pushed it into her office before positioning it by the window and picking Lucy up out of it, "your Daddy is going to get the fright of his life."

Taking the little girl over to her desk Stephanie sat down before carefully placing her in her lap facing the desk to continue working whilst she waited for Paul to return.

When Paul and Shawn eventually returned to the office they noticed how there was complete silence coming from Stephanie's office.

Shawn nudged Paul and loudly whispered, "do you think she's run away?"

Turning to look at his friend Paul raised his eyebrow, "or maybe she's doing something you know nothing about, working."

Crossing his arms Shawn pouted and flounced into Stephanie's office ahead of Paul but stopped dead when he saw her sat there with a baby in her arms.

Too busy looking at the food in the bag Paul didn't see Shawn stop until he crashed into the back of him, "what the hell are you doing now? You do know the doorway is not a good place to stop right?"

"Well I'm sorry for being in shock. We left and I assume there was no baby and we return and Stephanie suddenly has a new child. Granted it is your child but it is still a new child."

For the first time Paul actually turned his head and looked at Stephanie shocked to see her holding Lucy, "why is Lucy here?"

Stephanie smiled at him, "your Aunt has had a bad fall and your parents have had to rush out of town to be with her so they dropped Lucy off after you left."

Paul rushed over to Stephanie's side dropping the bag of food on the desk, "I'm so sorry. I'll try calling someone and see if they can watch her for the afternoon."

Shaking her head she was quick to dismiss it, "don't worry about it Paul. I have a meeting for most of the afternoon so she can stay and you can take care of her yourself. We will think about tomorrow later, let's just deal with this afternoon first."

Smiling gratefully Paul grabbed a chair and pulled it up next to Stephanie, "thank you."

Shawn took a seat and got all of the food out of the bag distributing it before they all tucked in.

After lunch Shawn left heading back to his own office to do his own work leaving Paul and Stephanie alone with Lucy, "so um thank you for being understanding Steph."

She shrugged, "I adore Lucy, I have enjoyed my cuddle over lunch so it was a win/win situation but for now I've got to go back to work."

He nodded, "so do I."

Carefully removed Lucy from Stephanie's lap Paul placed her back safely in her buggy before he wheeled her out into the outer portion of the office and placed the buggy right next to his desk so he could keep an eye on her as he worked.

Lucy had been happily laying in her buggy quite quietly until the people Stephanie had a meeting with arrived and then she started to cry.

Paul was torn as his daughter started to cry but then he was also trying to do his job at the same time but his heart won out, "could you hold on one moment please?"

Without allowing them to answer he scooped Lucy out of the buggy and gently bounced her, "shhh."

Stephanie had heard Lucy's crying and had gotten up to see if she was okay but when she opened her office door she was a little taken aback by the people she was meeting with being early, "Mike, Chris, I'm so sorry about this. You know things around here are normally nicely organised but there's been a family emergency and my PA's family have had to leave town suddenly. I do apologise for this."

Mike quickly shook his head, "don't worry about it. I actually think it's a nice touch that you're allowing him to have his daughter here and you haven't sent him home without pay."

Chuckling softly she stepped to the side of her door, "it's a win/win for us all because I get cuddles and he gets paid and gets to spend time with his daughter. Do come in though."

Both men smiled and nodded walking past Stephanie as Paul mouthed 'I'm so sorry' but she quickly shook her head to dismiss the apology as there was nothing to apologise for.

Paul eventually calmed Lucy down and sent her to sleep allowing him to get back on with his work.

When her meeting finished Stephanie showed the men out before she went and perched herself on the edge of Paul's desk, "so I was thinking about maybe heading out half an hour early and maybe picking some things up for dinner before I picked Alex up and you can go straight home if you want."

Leaning back in his chair he thought over the idea for a minute, "how about you pick up the things for dinner and I'll pick up Alex and we'll see who gets home first."

Raising her eyebrow she smirked a little, "oh a race, I like the way you think."

Rolling his eyes he shook his head, "not a race as such."

Leaning forward she couldn't help herself and pressed a soft kiss to his lips, "I know. Let's make the most of it though and just have and early night, it's Monday and I really don't want to be here."

Shrugging his shoulders Paul would welcome the early night, "sounds good to me. Let's pack up and get out of here."

Stephanie got off of the desk and went to pack up her things and turn her computer off whilst Paul did the same.

Ten minutes later and they were stood in the car park at work, "so I will see you when we both get home okay?"

Paul smiled and nodded, "yes you will."

Just as Stephanie walked away from him towards her car he felt his stomach tie into knots and he didn't know why, "Steph hang on a second."

Turning around she looked back at him oddly, "what is it?"

Paul shuffled his feet nervously not wanting to scare her, "I just wanted to say you're the best thing that's ever happened to me and I couldn't picture my life without you in it."

Slightly taken aback by the strange timing of his declaration she stepped back towards him, "and I couldn't imagine mine without you in it. I'm in it for the long haul." Leaning up she kissed his cheek softly, "see you at home."

Paul remained rooted to the spot as he watched her climb into her car before she headed out at which point he made his way to his car to head to pick up Alex.

When Stephanie pulled up at home she was confused seeing the side gate that shut off the back garden from the front swinging open, "I could have sworn that was shut when we left this morning. I guess the window cleaner has been and forgot to shut it after himself."

What she failed to see as she looked at the side gate and house was the shadow looking down at her as they lurked in the front bedroom window.

Pulling her keys from the ignition she climbed out of the car and grabbed the shopping bags from the trunk before she made her way to the front door.


	63. Chapter 63

Opening the front door Stephanie walked inside kicking the door shut behind her before dropping her keys on the table and pressing play on the answering machine rolling her eyes she listened to Shane's long message asking if she wanted to have lunch with him the next day, "why the hell did he just not ring my cell or at least learn to leave a message that was shorter and to the point?" Hitting delete on the answering machine to get rid of the message she walked through to the kitchen to get a start on dinner completely unaware of what awaited her.

Paul was relieved he arrived at Stephanie's parents to pick Alex up because he still felt really uneasy about Stephanie being on her own but he still didn't know why he felt like he did. Pulling the keys out of the ignition he got out of the car before walking around the other side to get Lucy out to collect Alex.

Knocking on the front door he was surprised when it opened and he was greeted with a harsh, "you're early."

Smiling politely when Linda opened the door he was a little taken aback by how harsh it sounded, "good evening Linda. Stephanie decided we should finish work early tonight because my Aunt got taken ill and my parents have had to go out of town to look after her so here I am."

Stepping aside she motioned for him to enter, "sorry Paul for being harsh, I'm just not sure where I stand with Stephanie at the minute as she seems to be all over the place. Is your Aunt going to be okay?"

Walking into the house he shrugged, "I don't know, I've not spoken to my parents yet but I think they're going to call tonight to let me know how she is and how long they will be staying with her."

"Well let me get Alex so you can head home and have a nice early evening and wait for your parents to call."

Paul laughed softly as Linda walked off calling for Alex, he may get home early from work but it definitely wouldn't mean he'd be finished with everything else early.

Placing Lucy's carrier on the floor he knelt down next to her and stroked her cheek with his thumb as she lay there quite content to stare up at him, "Daddy loves you very much and will get you home soon."

Alex came running out of the playroom and quickly attached himself to Paul's neck, "you're here."

Rubbing the little boys back softly he kissed the top of his head, "yes I am. Let's get your coat so we can go home to Mommy as she's cooking a special dinner."

Releasing Paul's neck Alex turned around to get his shoes and his coat that Linda was now holding for him.

Sitting himself down on the stairs Linda helped Alex put his shoes on before he stood back up and Linda helped him put his coat on, "ready!"

Laughing at the little boys enthusiasm Paul stood back up, "well I'm happy to hear that Alex. Come on and let's go home then."

As Paul picked Lucy's carrier up and turned towards the door Linda put her hand on his arm, "Paul, what are you going to do about someone watching Lucy tomorrow and the rest of the time you have to work and your parents are out of town?"

Turning around he could only shrug, "I have no idea. I guess I'll have to take her to work with me or something until my parents come home because my sister works and the only other person I know who could look after her also works."

"You could do that or you could leave her here with Vince and I. We're already taking care of Alex, we're used to looking after babies as we've had two children of our own and we regularly look after our grandchildren so we have everything we'd need to look after her. It would be no extra work to look after her also."

His eyes widened in shock, "you would really do that for me?"

Linda smiled and nodded, "of course we would. You could say it's a small token of appreciation for everything you have done and are doing for Stephanie and Alex if you wish or you could say that we have a feeling you'll be around for a long time to come and Lucy will be a proper part of our family eventually so we're just getting a jump start on treating her like our grandchild. However you want to put it the offer is still there and we are more than willing to take care of her for you if that is what you wish us to do."

Having an offer for someone to take care of Lucy for him took a load off of Paul's mind, "I would really appreciate it if you could please, thank you. Either myself or Stephanie will drop both kids off in the morning to you but if there's any problems and you can't watch Lucy don't worry about it."

Laughing softly she shook her head, "there won't be a problem don't worry." She then turned her attention to the little boy, "Alex come and give me a hug please."

Alex ran over and gave his Grandma a big hug, "love you."

Kissing the top of his head she smiled, "I love you too. Give your Mommy a big hug from me when you get home okay?"

Alex nodded his head obediently and ran back to Paul's side.

Opening the front door Paul stepped out into the evening air ready to get home. He didn't know why but he needed to see Stephanie really soon, he still had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach and it just wasn't going away this evening so he wanted to see her for himself and make sure she was okay.

Waving goodbye to Linda Paul led Alex to the car before he strapped Lucy in securely and then helped the little boy into his seat and strapped him in too before walking around the other side of the car to get home.

Stephanie walked into the kitchen and turned to put the shopping on the table which was when she noticed there was a distinct chill in the air. Turning towards the back door she was shocked when she saw the glass window in the top of it smashed but the door itself remained shut.

As she walked over the broken glass and closer to the door she noticed that somebody had moved the garden table and one of the chairs to just outside the door which was apparently what they had used to get in, if they had actually gotten into the house that was.

Feeling a massive knot of fear in the bottom of her stomach she turned around to walk out of the kitchen and go and call the Police before she checked to see if anything was missing but as she did a figure stepped into the kitchen, "hello beautiful."


	64. Chapter 64

"Hello beautiful."

Stephanie stood rooted to the spot unable to move, "what are you doing here?"

"I thought it would be nice if I was here waiting for you when you got home from work. You're earlier than I expected, I was going to have dinner on the table waiting for you."

Baffled she didn't quite understand what he was talking about, "uh . . . how did you get in?"

Motioning to the broken window behind her he took a step closer causing her to take a step to the side, "I couldn't find my key so I had to break the window to get in, I'll board it up after dinner. So where are the kids?"

Shaking her head to rid herself of the fog that had descended over her she was quickly getting angry, "Luke you don't live here, you don't have keys to **my** house so what you have done is classed as breaking and entering and I am going to call the police."

Taking purposeful strides towards the door to get the phone and call the police. Just as her hand touched the handle to pull the door open she felt a strong grip on her arm, "don't do that, you don't want to do that. You don't need to call the police, I'm not going to hurt you."

Pulling her arm free from his grip she kept her hand on the door handle, "I think I do because you broke into my house."

She went to pull the door open but he slid an arm around her waist and pulled her tightly back against him, "you don't need to call them. I'm not doing any harm, I only wanted to do something nice for my girlfriend."

She was quickly losing patience and she didn't know how to handle him as he wasn't going to let her leave the kitchen so she decided to change tack as Paul would be home soon, "okay I won't call the police, just let me go and we can spend some time together."

Relaxing his grip Luke allowed her to pull away from him and she quickly moved over to the sink putting distance between them, "so why do you think we're still together Luke?"

"Because I still love you and you still love me, I can see it in your eyes."

Shaking her head she sighed softly, "I don't love you Luke, not any more. After everything that went down with us I fell out of love with you and I now love Paul."

Her eyes widened when she realised what she had said about how she felt about Paul but she knew deep down that she meant it.

He stepped closer to her and brought his hand up to cup her cheek, "you don't mean that Steph. We can get past everything that happened between us and move on as a family, you, me and the two kids."

"We can't Luke, we just can't."

Paul pulled up to the house and immediately something felt off to him, he couldn't place a finger on what it was but he knew something bad had happened or was happening right now. As he pulled the keys out of the ignition he noticed that the side gate was open and he knew Stephanie would have shut it as soon as she got home normally as she was very conscious of not allowing people to get around the back of the house and he knew she was home as her car was parked right next to his.

Slowly opening the door to the car he turned in his seat to look at Alex, "I need you to just stay here a minute, I want to check on something and then we'll go inside okay?"

Alex nodded his head, "kay."

Paul then got out of the car and locked it so the kids were safe inside before he quietly walked over to the side gate to slip around the back of the house to make sure Steph was okay as she said she'd be working on dinner so she should be in the kitchen if all was well.

As he got nearer to the kitchen window that was on the side of the house he peeked inside and immediately spotted Stephanie pressed up against the sink. Taking a small step closer to the window so he could see more he spotted a man walking up to her and reaching out to stroke her cheek. Taking in their appearance he realised it was Luke and his eyes went back to Stephanie which was when he noticed behind her the window in the back door was smashed, "fuck."

Turning back around he pulled his phone from his pocket and immediately dialled Shawn's number as he walked away from the back of the house and back to the car.

The phone kept ringing as he walked, "come on Shawn, pick up your fucking phone."

Reaching the car he put his key back into the lock to unlock it when finally the phone was picked up, "at last Shawn, I thought you were never going to answer your damn phone."

"Whoa there horsey, where's the fire."

Paul didn't have time to explain it, "SOS, get to Steph's like yesterday because Luke's here."

Without giving Shawn chance to answer Paul flipped his phone shut before he opened the door to get Alex out, "we're going to play a little game."

Alex's eyes lit up at the idea of playing a game, "which one?"

"We're going to play hide and go seek. You and Lucy are going to hide in the nursery upstairs and I'm going to seek your Mommy."

Smiling brightly the little boy liked the sound of it, "kay."

Paul sighed softly as he lifted the little boy out and placed him on the ground, "we've got to be really quiet though so Mommy doesn't hear us go into the house and go upstairs so lots of tiptoeing okay?"

Alex eagerly nodded as Paul unbuckled Lucy's car seat from the car and placed the diaper bag over his shoulder before he lifted her out and locked the car up before leading Alex to the front door.

Very quietly Paul unlocked the door before he ushered Alex inside and then quietly shut the door behind him and walked towards the stairs praying Alex was quiet going up them.

Watching as the little boy started up the stairs he sighed with relief as he was as quiet as a mouse so following the little boy up the stairs Paul was equally as quiet.

When they reached the top of the stairs Paul ushered him towards the nursery gently nudging him through the door quickly following him and placing Lucy on the floor along with her diaper bag kneeling down next to her and pressing a soft kiss to the top of her head before he turned to Alex, "sit here with Lucy and be really quiet and I will come and get you once I find Mommy okay?"

Alex nodded his head sitting down next to Lucy's carrier and crossing his legs. Paul kissed him on the top of his head, "I love you." He then stood back up and walked towards the door taking one final glance at the two of them before he walked out shutting the door firmly behind him and tiptoeing back downstairs.

Back in the kitchen Stephanie was trying to shrink away from Luke, "I'm happy with Paul, I don't want to lose him."

Luke frowned, "but what about me? Do you want to lose me?"

She didn't know how to answer without pissing him off so she ignored the question, "he'll be home soon with the kids so you really need to go because I need to get the kids dinner on."

Shaking his head he wasn't going to leave that easily, "it's okay, I'm not stopping you starting their dinner. It would be nice to see the kids so they can get to know me."

Silently Stephanie started to pray that Paul would get their soon as Luke was really starting to scare her.

When Paul reached the bottom of the stairs he walked over to the front door and opened it before swinging it shut and calling out, "honey I'm home."


	65. Chapter 65

Warning: There is some mention of adult situations. Nothing graphic or serious but I felt it best to warn people.

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As Paul walked down the stairs he thought about just walking into the kitchen but then he thought that may frighten Luke more than him announcing his presence prior to that so when he reached the bottom of the stairs he went and opened the front door before slamming it shut, "honey I'm home."

Once he had shut the front door he quietly opened it again slightly so Shawn could just walk into the house if Luke hadn't left by then. As soon as he had opened the door he made his way to the kitchen and slowly pushed the door open.

Stephanie jumped when she heard the front door slam, she was relieved Paul was home but petrified about how he would react when he saw Luke was here.

Taking a step away from Luke she turned to the door and waited for it to swing open and reveal her boyfriend and hopefully her saviour.

When the door opened Paul smiled at Stephanie, "hey baby." Once he pushed it open further he saw Luke for the 'first time', "oh, hello Luke, I didn't know you'd be here."

She forced a smile in Paul's direction, "where are the kids?"

Not wanting Luke to know they were there he decided to lie, "your parents have got them for the night, they decided we should have some time alone together so insisted on keeping them."

She couldn't help the strange look that appeared on her face because she knew there was no way that was true, "oh I see."

Luke looked between the two of them, "are you not going to tell him what is going on Stephanie?"

Her head snapped to look at Luke, "the bit where I tell him you broke into my house and won't get out?"

Glaring at her Luke shook his head, "it is **our** house not yours and I didn't break in, I just couldn't find my keys. I meant about how we're back together."

It was Paul's turn to now snap his head to look at Luke before he looked at Stephanie with a raised brow but before he could open his mouth and ask the question her head was already shaking in denial of the fact.

Taking a step towards Stephanie so he could stand with her and hold her as she she was starting to look more freaked out than when he had first entered the kitchen he was intercepted by Luke who quickly grabbed Stephanie around the waist and pulled her to him before he reached towards the knife block at the back of the worktop and pulled out the first knife he could get his hands on and put it to her neck, "take another step closer and I will hurt her."

Shawn had taken the call from Paul and panicked, what the hell was Luke doing at Stephanie's? Spinning his car around he raced across town to get to Stephanie's as soon as possible not caring about any speed limits he was breaking until he saw the blue flashing lights in his rear view mirror causing him to slow down and pull over.

As he stopped the car and rolled down his window he started drumming his fingers on the steering wheel impatiently, "come on, come on."

The Police Officer walking to the car taking in Shawn's appearance, "are we in a hurry this evening Sir?"

Rolling his eyes Shawn couldn't help himself, "yes, duh. Why else do you think I was speeding?"

"Sir I will warn you now about your tone or you will get arrested. Do you have a good reason as to why you were speeding?"

Rubbing his forehead with both hands Shawn sighed before turning his head to look at the officer, "yes, my best friend's violent stalker ex-boyfriend is at her house and I want to get there before somebody gets hurt so can we please hurry this up a little?"

The Police Officer closed his notebook, "has she called the Police?"

"I don't know, her current boyfriend rang saying there was an SOS and the ex was there and to get there as soon as possible and with there potentially being two very young children there I wasn't keen on keeping him on the phone to ask the questions. Can you please just issue me the ticket and let me get on my way please?"

Shaking his head the Police Officer frowned, "I can't do that just yet I'm afraid Sir. What is the address where the situation is going down?"

Shawn's temper was rising a little as time was passing, "133 Ladbrokes Way, why?"

Before answering Shawn the Officer got on his radio asking the station if any calls had been taken for that address. Seconds later the Officer was off of his radio, "okay Sir, follow us and we will get you there quickly but legally."

Relieved Shawn nodded, "just please don't use your siren when we get close to the house, I don't know what he is capable of."

Taking note of Shawn's request the Officer ran back to his car and was soon speeding past Shawn with his lights flashing.

Paul took a step back when Luke pressed the knife to Stephanie's throat not wanting her to get hurt, "you don't have to do that Luke, I'm not the enemy here."

Luke glared at him, "you want to take my girlfriend away from me."

Shaking his head Paul frowned, "no I don't Luke, I really don't. I honestly had no idea the two of you were together."

At this point in time he was willing to say anything to Luke to get him to a: put the knife down and b: let Stephanie go.

Luke silently thought about what Paul was saying before he pressed the knife closer to Stephanie's neck causing her to yelp, "Luke please."

Relaxing his grip on the knife around Stephanie's neck he had clearly had an idea, "we can sort this out."

Nodding his head Paul agreed, "we can. We can sort it out man to man, just the two of us. Let Stephanie go and she can go outside and we can discuss this between the two of us and sort it out without anybody getting hurt."

Stephanie's eyes widened when Paul suggested that she left the room and it was just him and Luke left alone together, she really didn't want to leave them alone together because she didn't know what Luke would do to Paul if she wasn't there.

Dropping the hand holding the knife to his side before pushing her towards the door, "you heard the man, go outside."

Reluctantly Stephanie raced past Paul and towards the front door stopping only briefly to pick up her purse before she ran outside and left the door wide open behind her.

Pacing the steps she pulled out her phone and pressed 9-1-1 and was about to press 'Call' when she saw a Police car come screaming into her driveway, "well that was quick."

Before she had chance to move the Officers climbed out of the car and raced towards her, "is your ex-boyfriend still inside?"

Slowly she nodded her head, "he has a knife."

The Officers pulled out their guns, "is he alone?"

Shaking her head she moved away from the door, "no he's with my boyfriend Paul."

Walking straight past her the Officers headed into the house.

It was only when she turned back to the drive did she notice Shawn's car and him stood leaning against the hood. Running down the steps she ran straight into his arms and held onto him tightly, "I'm so scared."


	66. Chapter 66

Luke watched Stephanie leave the kitchen before he turned to Paul and raised the knife in his direction, "so tell me how you think we can sort this out."

Paul looked around to see if there was anything he could defend himself with but he could see nothing so he was just going to hope Shawn got there fast and he managed to keep Luke talking until he did and they could both overpower him, "I thought if we talked man to man we could come to an understanding."

Taking a step closer Luke waved the knife around, "what is there to discuss? You're having an affair with my girlfriend."

Frowning Paul motioned to the knife, "do you want to put that down? We're talking civilly without it."

Taking another step closer to Paul he thrust it in his face, "you don't want to know what damage I can do with this. It's amazing what you learn in prison, I can take you out of the picture once and for all but then that wouldn't be very fair on your kids now would that? Then again with me being in their life I would happily be their new Daddy and they won't need you anyway."

Paul felt his temper rising at the thought of Luke taking him away from his daughter but before he could say anything out of the corner of his eye he saw guns being directed at him and Luke, "oh fuck."

Raising his hands in the air Paul stayed where he was as the Police walked further into the room, "place the knife on the table and put your hands in the air."

Luke turned his attention to the Police still holding the knife in his hands, "why should I? We were sorting things out like adults without your interference."

The Police held their guns steady on both men, "because a knife is an offensive weapon and unless you drop it we will shoot you. Put the knife down before you get yourself in any more trouble."

Luke waved the knife around, "I'm not putting this down until he is out of my girlfriend's life for good."

The one Police Officer moved behind Luke carefully whilst the other Officer kept Luke's attention and when he was expecting it least the Officer behind him grabbed hold of his arm holding the knife and twisted it behind his back forcing him to drop the knife on the floor as the other Officer got involved and between them they put handcuffs on him.

Stephanie was pacing back in forth in front of Shawn desperate for Paul to walk out of the house so she knew that he was okay but the minutes were ticking by and her fear was growing.

Suddenly Luke appeared in the doorway flanked by the two Police Officers but she couldn't see Paul, turning to Shawn her eyes went wide, "where is he Shawn?"

Shawn had kept his eyes fixed on the front door and he actually could see Paul so he pointed behind Steph, "right there."

Spinning around she saw Paul for the first time and immediately ran towards him and straight into his arms, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry."

Paul wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly burying his face in her hair just breathing in her smell as for a minute he genuinely didn't think he would see her again.

Shawn watched the two of them together convinced that there was more to their relationship than simply friendship and he genuinely couldn't have been happier for them, "where are the kids?"

Before either of them could answer the one Police Officer walked over to them, "we're going to need to take statements from the both of you but that can wait until tomorrow as I think you have been through enough today."

Paul smiled softly, "thank you I appreciate that as I need to get the back door sorted out."

"We will be in touch, have a good evening."

With that the Police Officer walked back to the car to drive Luke to jail.

As soon as the Officer left Shawn turned back to Paul and Stephanie, "so where are the kids?"

Stephanie looked up at Paul, "yeah, where are they?"

Paul's eyes widened, "they're in the nursery upstairs, I told Alex to stay there out of the way because I knew they'd be safe upstairs."

Shawn nodded, "I will go and get them."

Before Paul and Stephanie had time to answer Shawn was already walking past them into the house.

As soon as Shawn was out of earshot Stephanie turned back to Paul and held him tightly again, "I love you so much."

Shocked by her declaration he held her shoulders and pulled her back away from him so he could look into her eyes, "do you realise what you just said?"

Nodding she bit her lip suddenly very nervous, "yes, I said I love you and it's true, I do. I understand if you don't feel the same way and I am happy for us to slow down but I just wanted to say what is in my heart and what I am feeling because after today I . . ."

Stephanie's rambling thoughts were cut off by the feel of Paul's lips against hers as he kissed her.

When Shawn went upstairs he went straight to the Nursery pushing the door open and smiled softly seeing Alex on the floor obviously trying to entertain a clearly grizzly Lucy, "what are you up to Alex?"

Without even turning to look at Shawn the little boy simply said, "she sad."

Walking over to them Shawn knelt down on the floor and undid the straps holding Lucy into her carrier before he picked her up, "awww, what's wrong with my baby girl?"

Lucy grabbed hold of his tie and laid her head on his shoulder, "come on Alex, let's go downstairs and see your Mommy and take Lucy to her Daddy."

Alex dropped the toy as he practically jumped up from the floor and ran to the door excited to see his Mommy.

Shawn was right behind Alex as he made his way out of the door and to the stairs.

Alex raced down the stairs as fast as his little legs would carry him and he raced out of the front door as it was still wide open but he stopped dead when he saw Stephanie and Paul kissing.

As Shawn walked out of the front door he wondered why Alex had stopped but when he saw what was in front of him it all made sense. Clearing his throat he waited for the pair of them to pull apart.

Hearing Shawn clear his throat Paul and Stephanie pulled apart sheepishly, so much for keeping their relationship on the down low.

Once Stephanie and Paul were apart Alex raced over to Stephanie and hugged her tightly, "Mommy! Daddy found you."

Shawn and Paul exchanged looks as Shawn passed Lucy to him.

Picking the little boy up Stephanie balanced Alex on her hip whilst sliding an arm around Paul's waist not sure where to take what he had said, "I love you baby boy."

"Love oo too Mommy, love Daddy too."

Hearing him say it a second time she couldn't ignore it, "what do you mean 'Daddy' Alex?"

Alex pointed to Paul, "Daddy."

Stephanie squeezed her eyes tightly shut as she felt them well with tears before one tear slipped out of her lids and down her cheek causing Alex to get sad, "don't cwy."

Carefully wrapping his arm around Stephanie's shoulder he rubbed her back gently, "shh it's okay baby."

Keeping her eyes tightly closed she tried to calm her emotions down before she opened them again, "who told you to call Paul Daddy?"

Frowning Alex didn't understand so he just stayed silent.

Moving away from Paul she handed Alex to Shawn, "go and watch some cartoons please."

Alex's bottom lip started to quiver, "I in twuble?"

Violently she shook her head, "no no, I just need to talk to Paul alone a minute."

Reluctantly Alex grabbed hold of Shawn's neck before he took him inside the house.

Once Alex had left Stephanie turned to Paul, "what are you thinking?"

Shifting Lucy in his arms Paul was conscious that she needed her dinner but he needed to sort this out with Stephanie too, "I'm thinking I love you, you love me and if you're happy for me to be Alex's Dad and him to call me Dad then I am happy to be his Dad."

Stephanie couldn't help the tears that freely started falling down her cheeks, "I love you so much."

Pulling her close he wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed the top of her head as she buried it into his neck.


	67. Chapter 67

Sooooo this is the final chapter, I hope you all enjoy it :)

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Paul held Stephanie tightly for a minute before Lucy started to get grizzly so he pulled away from Stephanie slightly, "okay okay baby girl, I get that you're tired and hungry. Steph would you like to relax on the couch with the kids whilst I get Lucy some dinner and me and Shawn clean up the kitchen?"

Stephanie shrugged her shoulders a little still quite unnerved by the whole Luke experience, "I guess."

Taking his hand in hers and linking their fingers together he squeezed it gently, "you're safe you know, Luke is in jail and can't get you."

Smiling softly she couldn't believe how well he seemed to be able to read her, "I know that in my heart but I'm still a little jumpy."

Tugging on her hand gently he started to walk towards the front door, "let's go inside and shut the door and hopefully you'll feel happier."

Following him inside she only hoped he was right because she really needed to relax for Alex's sake.

Shawn was sitting comfortably on the couch with his feet on the coffee table watching cartoons with Alex, "this couch is much more comfortable than mine."

Alex giggled, "Mommy will be maaaaaadd."

Ruffling his hair Shawn laughed, "what Mommy doesn't know won't hurt her."

When Paul and Stephanie walked into the lounge the first words uttered were, "get your dirty feet off of my coffee table."

Alex sniggered, "You's in twuble."

Shawn put his feet on the floor, "I'm sorry, I'll clean it before I leave."

Paul laughed, "you're under the thumb and she's not even your wife."

Sticking his tongue out at his best friend Shawn crossed his arms, "oh shut up Mr I have a girlfriend and am not going to tell my best friend."

"Yeah about that Shawn, it's not that I wanted to keep it from you but we thought it would be best to keep it quiet until we were sure."

Shawn stood up from the couch, "let's not do this here yeah?"

Paul nodded, "sure. I was going to ask you to come and help sort out the kitchen window anyway."

Handing Lucy to Stephanie Paul kissed both of their cheeks, "I'll be back in a minute with her dinner and we will get the kitchen sorted and then we can think about dinner for the rest of us."

Smiling softly Stephanie rubbed Lucy's back, "we'll be fine."

She then took a seat next to Alex as the boys headed into the kitchen to clear up.

As soon as they entered the kitchen Shawn shut the door, "so how long has this been going on for?"

Paul turned to face him unsure if Shawn was mad that they were together or just upset that nobody told him, "a couple of weeks tops. It kind of happened that weekend I helped them move back home but we didn't want to say anything as we weren't sure if or how it would work between us. The only people that know are you and Steph's family."

"You mean you haven't told your parents yet?"

Shaking his head Paul sighed softly as he turned and got the dustpan and brush from underneath the sink, "no, we honestly haven't seen them together to be able to mention it but when they get back into town we will tell them . . . I hope."

Shawn walked over and picked up the key for the back door before he went and unlocked it, "your parents will be so pleased for you, just like I am because after all I did get the two of you together."

Paul laughed softly as he bent down to sweep up the glass, "of course you did, I mean it has absolutely nothing to do with their being an attraction there, it's all your doing."

Leaning against the counter Shawn smiled proudly, "thank you, I'm pleased you're acknowledging it."

Rolling his eyes Paul just cleaned up the glass before disposing of it safely, "take your big head and go and find something to patch up this door with whilst I sort Lucy's dinner out."

Shawn headed outside to sort the furniture out so it was no longer outside of the back door and to see if he could find anything suitable whilst Paul made Lucy's dinner and then took it in to Stephanie.

Once Stephanie had Lucy's dinner Paul went back to the kitchen to see what Shawn had found, just as he was about to go out of the back door to search for him Shawn appeared in the doorway with a piece of board in his hand, "one piece of board and now we just need to find some nails and a hammer or something to attach it to the door with."

A few minutes of searching high and low later and they had found a hammer and a few nails, "okay Shawn if I hammer the nails in will you hold the board in place?"

Shawn looked at Paul sceptically, "is this code for 'I'm going to break your fingers'?"

Laughing Paul liked the idea but didn't want to face the wrath of Rebecca if he did, "as fun as that sounds, no. Your wife would kill me if I did that."

"That is true. Come on then, let's do this."

The two men stepped outside and started to line the board up before Paul got the first nail in place and started to hammer it in. As Paul started hammering out of nowhere Shawn said, "so when are you moving out again?"

The next sound that was heard was a yelp of pain from Paul as he hammered his thumb, "Jesus Christ Shawn, did you have to do that?" Gripping hold of his thumb tightly Paul tried to will the pain away, "fuck this hurts."

Shawn smiled sheepishly, "sorry, it's just a question that came to mind. So what's the answer?"

Paul shrugged, "the weekend I guess, I obviously haven't talked with Stephanie about it but I should imagine the weekend just so she feels safe and settled again."

"Well if you want help moving your stuff back home you know where I am."

Nodding absently Paul just went back to the board and the nails and started hammering them in again silently.

Once the board was secured to the door the men went back inside shutting and locking the door securely behind them.

Having finished what Paul needed his help with Shawn looked at his watch, "okay I'd better get home to Rebecca before she thinks I've run off with my secretary."

Paul laughed, "for one you don't have a secretary, you **are **the secretary and two, you've not cleaned the coffee table yet."

"Fine, get me some furniture polish and I'll clean it."

Happy to oblige his best friend Paul grabbed the polish and a duster and handed them over, "there you go."

Shawn took the polish and went into the lounge closely followed by Paul and started to clean the table off as Paul took a seat in the chair in the corner.

As soon as the coffee table was clean Shawn stood up, "okay so I'm going to head home now. I'll see you at work tomorrow Steph?"

Shaking her head Stephanie shifted Lucy in her arms, "no you won't, I'm taking the day off and so is Paul."

"I'm what?"

Looking over at Paul nervously she chewed on her lip, "I'm sorry, I just kind of assumed that you'd prefer to stay home with Lucy and maybe me too."

Moving to sit on the newly clean coffee table Paul took her hand gently, "I would love to, it's just the first I heard of it."

Smiling shyly she shrugged her shoulders, "I was just thinking about it here when I was sat with the kids."

Shawn hated to interrupt the moment but he really needed to go, "okay I'll give you a call tomorrow, take care and if you need anything just call me okay?"

Paul and Stephanie both smiled and thanked Shawn before Paul escorted him to the door.

Once Shawn had left Paul went back into the lounge and sat back on the coffee table, "so is my little girl ready for her bath?

"She sure is so if you want to give her a bath and put her to bed I'll make Alex some dinner and then we can decide what we want?"

Nodding she kissed Lucy on the top of the head, "goodnight baby girl."

Paul then took Lucy from Stephanie's arms and headed upstairs with her deep in thought after what Shawn had said, he didn't really want to move out but he couldn't stay here and impose on Stephanie.

After Paul had left Stephanie turned the TV off, "come on you, let's get some dinner and you can keep me company."

Alex smiled brightly and jumped off of the couch and grabbed hold of Stephanie's hand before they walked to the kitchen together.

Sitting Alex at the table Stephanie went to the freezer to see what she could cook.

Twenty minutes later and after a lot of soul searching Paul had made a decision about what he was going to do.

Walking down the stairs he kept his mind focussed on what he needed to say before he lost his bottle, heading straight into the kitchen without even announcing his presence he simply said, "I'll move out at the weekend if that's okay with you."

Stephanie spun around surprised by what she had heard but before she had chance to even open her mouth to say anything Alex was out of his chair and attached to Paul's leg, "no go."

Carefully prising Alex's grip from around his leg he knelt down with him, "I can't stay here forever buddy, I've got to go back to my own house."

Alex gripped Paul's neck, "no go."

Rubbing the little boys back he wasn't sure what to say to placate him, "you'll still see me, I'm only going back to my house across town."

Stood there Stephanie felt her heart breaking, not just at the way Alex was reacting but at the thought of Paul leaving and it had nothing to do with Luke as he wasn't going to bother her anymore, "it's not your house though is it Paul?"

Still holding on to Alex he lifted his head, "maybe not but it is my home until I can afford my own place."

Walking closer she ran her hand over Alex's head, "you have your own place, it's here with us."

Keeping a tight hold on Alex he slowly stood up so he was face to face with her, "what are you trying to say to me?"

Shrugging her shoulders she looked down at her hands as she played with her fingers and shuffled her feet nervously, "I don't want you to go. I know you've only been staying here a week but I can't bear the idea of you leaving again."

He was shocked to hear her say that, "you really mean it? You really want me to stay and not because of Alex or Luke or anything else, it's all you?"

Biting her lip as she lifted her head slowly to look into his eyes, "I really mean it, it's all me. I know we said we'd go slowly but everything that's happened has kind of thrown us together and it feels right. I want you here with me, with us, forever. What do you say?"

Smiling he reached out to her with one hand and pulled her closer to him before he wrapped his arm around her shoulder, "I would love to."

Leaning up she kissed him softly on the mouth, "I love you."

Moving his hand to her cheek he stroked it gently with his finger, "I love you too."

He relaxed as she wrapped her arms around him and Alex and he held her back happier and more content at this moment than he had ever been in his life.

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Now you have read the final chapter I just wanted to take a moment to thank each and every one of you who favourited the story, read the story and reviewed the story, your feedback has meant a lot to me and has kept me going, now go read my other story :-P LOL Nah, seriously though, thank you and I **do** have a sequel idea in mind but I'm not sure how many, if any, of you would be interested in a sequel so if you're interested feel free to let that interest known.


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